As IBB, Gusau, Saraki groups fuse into Atiku camp
ABUJA— A DAY after he was chosen as a consensus presidential aspirant by the Northern Political Leaders Forum, NPLF, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, yesterday, drew the battle line with President Goodluck Jonathan on what he described as the President’s failures in managing the economy and upholding the zoning principle of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
Atiku who addressed his first major press conference since his emergence as the NPLF presidential aspirant, accused President Jonathan of threatening the cohesion of the country with his determination to contest the presidency.
The agreement by campaign organisations of the erstwhile aspirants to support Mallam Adamu Ciroma-led NPLF’s choice, nonetheless, Atiku was, yesterday, flayed by the Senate Majority Whip and Deputy Director General of the Ibrahim Babangida Campaign Organisation, Senator Kanti Bello. Senator Bello described the choice as irrational and unthought of.
Tinubu opposes emergence of Atiku
Erstwhile Atiku political associate and leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, described the zoning of offices as cancerous as he expressed opposition to the process of the emergence of Atiku as a consensus aspirant.
The Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, on its part, dismissed Atiku’s assertions on the President as hypocritical as the campaign described Atiku as a disloyal politician with no respect for agreements.
Atiku was flanked by several political associates including directors-general of the campaign organisations of his three rivals for the consensus candidacy. Director-General of the campaign organisation of the Ibrahim Babangida Campaign Organisation, Dr. Raymond Dokpesi, announced at the occasion that three presidential aspirants who did not get the nod of the Ciroma committee would immediately merge their structures into the Atiku Campaign Organisation.
Noting that the unity of the country had been threatened by President’s Jonathan’s alleged disrespect for zoning, Atiku said: “The unity of this country, equity and justice require that existing agreements freely entered into by individuals and groups be respected.
This is not a North versus South thing as some dishonest people would like to frame it. It is about honour, trust and fairness. Our words must be our bond. We must learn to respect agreements so that the unity of this country may endure.
“We are a diverse people who recognized early in our history that national unity, fairness and equity require that we share positions of power among our diverse peoples. That is what we call zoning/rotation of public offices.
“Zoning has become part of our political culture. That is how the PDP zoned the office of President to the South in 1999. In 2002, an expanded caucus of the PDP reaffirmed the zoning of the Presidency to the South for another four years after which it would be the turn of the north for eight years.
“Our current President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, was present at that expanded caucus meeting and voted in support of zoning. It, therefore, came as a rude shock to most Nigerians, including northern leaders in the PDP, when indications emerged that Dr Jonathan, would, in utter disregard of the PDP constitution and extant agreements, offer himself for election to the office of President in 2011. We were alarmed that the progress that we have made as a nation to address our diversity in relation to power_sharing would be jeopardized, with consequences that may be catastrophic.”
Debt load
Flaying the economic direction of the country, Atiku particularly flayed President Jonathan’s stewardship of the economy and the increasing debt load of the country which he claimed was nearly wiped out when he served as Vice-President to President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He said: “Why are our budgets not being implemented? Why has the money in our Excess Crude Account disappeared at a time when oil prices have been way above the benchmark used for our budget estimates? Why are our foreign reserves being depleted to dangerous levels leading to rating agencies downgrading our status?
“Why is this government quickly dragging us back to indebtedness after we worked so hard and sacrificed so much in the past to pull ourselves out of debt slavery? Clearly we need a new leadership in this country. That is why I am in this race.”
Reacting to Atiku’s assertions, the Jonathan-Sambo campaign organisation described him as an inconsistent politician with a known record for disloyalty and incapacity for keeping of agreements.
Atiku doesn’t respect agreements —Sully Abu
Director of Media and Publicity, Mr. Sully Abu, said that Atiku’s statement calling on President Jonathan to respect PDP’s agreement on zoning was misplaced since the PDP to which Atiku belongs, decided that President Jonathan was free to run.
He said: “Atiku principally spoke on two issues which were zoning and the economy. The PDP to which Atiku claims to have allegiance, decided, having weighed all the circumstances, operating factors, that President Jonathan was entitled to run for the 2010 Presidential elections if he so desires.


“Now, every loyal member of a political party ought to abide by the decision of that party but perhaps, it is too much to expect such behaviour from Atiku since he has been jumping in and out of political parties.

“As for the economy, what he talked about is the same song he has been singing for a long time. Though the Nigerian economy has been improving steadily as attested to by Nigerians and by at least one internationally reputable rating agency.
But for our political opponents, all is fair in politics including the selective use of facts and outright falsehood to score cheap political goals. However, Nigerians will not be deceived this time”.
Senator Bello kicks
Senator Bello said the process which produced Atiku was undemocratic and could well spell doom for the party.
Bello who spoke on the Hausa Service of the British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC, Hausa Service monitored in Kaduna, said it was a mistake for the North to have gone into the arrangement of trying to get a consensus candidate.
Bello said: “We never contemplated that the committee would choose Atiku. Babangida is my choice because I believe in Allah, he is the one that I believe, can do things that will lead us to success.
But as I said, when someone was assigned to be an arbiter and they did what supposed not to be the case, then what is mine in that?”
National Vice Chairman of the PDP Youth Vanguard, Rilwan Abdullahi, said at a news conference in Kaduna, that the Ciroma committee lacked the competence to speak for the North since some of its members were not in the PDP.
He said: “We as the youth want to make our position clear that such contribution by the wise men will do no good to the country. The selection of Atiku by the wise men negates the principle of true and genuine democracy.
“Sectionalizing the issue of Nigerian presidency is undemocratic, unfair and unjust and because the Nigerian Constitution has given every Nigerian the right to aspire to any office in the country.
We believe that this decision by the Ciroma_led wise men will not be in the interest of the North and they are not speaking for the North.”
Former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu equally frowned at the emergence of Atiku as the consensus candidate of the North in the 2011 presidential elections, under Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, platform.
Tinubu who described the selective process as a system which was not effectively arranged and done on the basis of democratic principles, said: “I am opposed to the cancer of zoning of political offices; I would rather urge Nigerians to work towards uniting the country rather than tearing it along sectional lines.
I am not a PDP member, neither do I subscribe to the principles of zoning as they are arguing in PDP, I want a united Nigeria, I do not want a sectional Nigeria.”
Arewa Youth Forum
Atiku’s choice was equally flayed by the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, AYCF, which said the emergence of Atiku Abubakar as the consensus candidate for the North was a PDP affair. AYCF president, Alhaji Yerima Shettima, said: “Atiku’s emergence as consensus candidate for the PDP does not translate to a northern candidate.”
The Arewa Youth President noted that Ciroma and his committee could not speak or choose for the North, but for the PDP alone, adding: “Even as PDP members, their committee is limited to a clique and do not reflect the choice of all PDP members in the North. Atiku is not a popular personality that has the Northern acceptance. Soon, we will be meeting to make a choice on the presidential aspirant we’ll endorse, irrespective of ethnic or party lines.”
However, Atiku’s choice as the consensus aspirant of the NPLF was received with jubilation in Yola, Adamawa State, Atiku’s home base.
Moments after the news of Atiku emergence filtered into the state, Yola the state capital was agog as thousands of his supporters thronged the main streets jubilating and chanting.
IN ATTENDANCE
Senator Ben Obi
Dr. Udenta Udenta
Dubem Onyia
Chief Raymond Dokpesi
Chris Mamman
Dr. Ojo Onukaba
Garba Shehu
Alhaji Lawal Kaita
Dr. Shettima Mustapha
Professor Sam Oyovbaire
Bibi Farouk
Meden Teneke, Factional Chairman, PDP Adamawa
Tonye Princewill
Funke Adedoyin
Musa Elayo
Obinna Uzor
Adamu Modibbo
Aboki Zhawa
Bello Sabo Abdulkadir
Prof. Chukwuma Soludo

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/11/atiku-draws-battle-line-with-jonathan/

He no fit !

Jonathan is more than capable !

I find it amusing that a man willing to emerge from a process where the most important criteria were:

1. The language you speak
2. The God you pray to
3. Ethnicity or Tribe
4. A process that even considers folks like Bukola Saraki not Northern enough


Will have the temerity to accuse anyone else of threatning the cohesion of the country.

Atiku by taking part in the Ciroma process and benefiting from it lost any moral right to lecture anyone else on Unity. He has slaughtered his honour and any National appeal he had on the altar of desperation.

I call on all Southerners, Middle Belters and Yes Hausa-Fulanis from the core North who recognise that this is not how any country should choose a leader in the 21st century to stand up against this madness.

Vote for any other candiate who does not subscribe to Adamu Ciroma's version of Nigeria but Atiku Abubakar must be defeated. Adamu Ciroma is still stuck in 1957. The man must be told 50years are not 50days and Nigeria has come a long way!!!!!!!!!!

Atiku by taking part in the Ciroma process and benefiting from it lost any moral right to lecture anyone else on Unity. He has slaughtered his honour and any National appeal he had on the altar of desperation.

How is he different from GEJ?
How did GEJ become the defacto president of Nigeria?
Atiku had every right to contest since the Nigerian people do not determine who gets the electorate.

In the final analysis, may the better crook win.

We need to stop deceiving ourselves with 'selectivism'.

If the Nigerian people were voting these political jobbers into power, that is a different story entirely.

Atiku gets a shot and everyone is up in arms because he is a Northerner.


Taking a look at GEJ and Atiku, the difference is clear.

Atiku is more polished and refined. GEJ? Just a tout favoured by area fathers like OBJ in politics.

Bottom line:

If you cannot put a question mark on the process by which GEJ found himself as the president of Nigeria, you cannot put one on Atiku's political ambition either.

Either way, the Nigerian people do not get to decide who gets the presidential seat.

So, why are we having this discussion?

Remove ethnic sentiments, Atiku is the best there is out there having dealt with OBJ diplomatically for cheating the Northern part of Nigeria out of the chance at it's own 8 years.

Thanks to OBJ and his choice of an unhealthy Yaradua all to forster his third term agenda by proxy. Glad to know the Northerners are not illiterate and silly afterall, having realized they have been conned by OBJ.

We do not have a democracy, so let us stop this self-deceit. Nigeria remains very ethnic. Therefore, an agreement should be an agreement between the king-makers of Nigeria till the slumbering masses learn to take their socio-economic and political destinies into their hands.

Blazay:

How is he different from GEJ?
How did GEJ become the defacto president of Nigeria?
Atiku had every right to contest since the Nigerian people do not determine who gets the electorate.

In the final analysis, may the better crook win.

We need to stop deceiving ourselves with 'selectivism'.

If the Nigerian people were voting these political jobbers into power, that is a different story entirely.

Atiku gets a shot and everyone is up in arms because he is a Northerner.


Taking a look at GEJ and Atiku, the difference is clear.

Atiku is more polished and refined. GEJ? Just a tout favoured by area fathers like OBJ in politics.

Bottom line:

If you cannot put a question mark on the process by which GEJ found himself as the president of Nigeria, you cannot put one on Atiku's political ambition either.

Either way, the Nigerian people do not get to decide who gets the presidential seat.

So, why are we having this discussion?

Remove ethnic sentiments, Atiku is the best there is out there having dealt with OBJ diplomatically for cheating the Northern part of Nigeria the chance at it's own 8 years.

We do not have a democracy, so let us stop this self-deceit. Nigeria remains very ethnic. Therefore, an agreement should be an agreement between the king-makers of Nigeria til the slumbering masses learn to take their socio-economic and political destinies into their hands.

Hey Boss, I am back.
Told you, I know people

I even know the owner! Very well connected

fstranger:

Hey Boss, I am back.
Told you, I know people

I even know the owner! Very well connected

I think I already figured that out.
In any case, I bind thee.
I see you are not 'killable'.
Many respects.
I am deeply humbled. For who am I to mess with you?
More grease to your elbows ma.
Congratulations.

Blazay:

[size=14pt]How is he different from GEJ?
How did GEJ become the defacto president of Nigeria?
Atiku had every right to contest since the Nigerian people do not determine who gets the electorate.

In the final analysis, may the better crook win.

We need to stop deceiving ourselves with 'selectivism'.

If the Nigerian people were voting these political jobbers into power, that is a different story entirely.

Atiku gets a shot and everyone is up in arms because he is a Northerner.


Taking a look at GEJ and Atiku, the difference is clear.

Atiku is more polished and refined. GEJ? Just a tout favoured by area fathers like OBJ in politics.

Bottom line:

If you cannot put a question mark on the process by which GEJ found himself as the president of Nigeria, you cannot put one on Atiku's political ambition either.

Either way, the Nigerian people do not get to decide who gets the presidential seat.

So, why are we having this discussion?

Remove ethnic sentiments[/size], Atiku is the best there is out there having dealt with OBJ diplomatically for cheating the Northern part of Nigeria out of the chance at it's own 8 years.

Thanks to OBJ and his choice of an unhealthy Yaradua all to forster his third term agenda by proxy. Glad to know the Northerners are not illiterate and silly afterall, having realized they have been conned by OBJ.

We do not have a democracy, so let us stop this self-deceit. Nigeria remains very ethnic. Therefore, an agreement should be an agreement between the king-makers of Nigeria til the slumbering masses learn to take their socio-economic and political destinies into their hands.

what can i say! its like more people are seeing it from my point of view!

for the people that were insulting me, can you comprehend this?

AS I SAID, "IT IS COMMON SENSE"

Blazay:

I think I already figured that out.
In any case, I bind thee.
I see you are not 'killable'.
Many respects.
I am deeply humbled. For who am I to mess with you?
More grease to your elbows ma.
Congratulations.

[size=28pt]A Y A K A T A B O N G O [/size]

“More grease to your elbow” or simply “more grease.” This is the default expression many illiterate abokis deploy when they want to say “bravo” or “well done” or just express applause for a nice job. It is certainly a distortion of the antiquated British expression “more power to your elbow,” which is derived from Irish English.

The correct phrase is more power to your elbow!
one can grease a palm not an elbow

jason12345:

what can i say! its like more people are seeing it from my point of view!

for the people that were insulting me, can you comprehend this?

AS I SAID, "IT IS COMMON SENSE"

Don't worry.
Common sense is not common.
A high price Nigeria has to pay and will continue paying dearly as educated fools.
Let them keep insulting.
You only keep laughing.
Cheap entertainment.

fstranger:

The correct phrase is more power to your elbow!
one can grease a palm not an elbow

What gods have I offended?

Blazay:

Don't worry.
Common sense is not common.
A high price Nigeria has to and will continue paying dearly as educated fools.
Let them keep insulting.
You only keep laughing.

my brother, education given to the so called southerners is a waste of money and time! haba, are they that daf.t i don't know why they think they are smart just to look stupid at the end of the day??

to onlytruth, udeuze and co

WE SHALL SEE!!!

mikeansy:

I find it amusing that a man willing to emerge from a process where the most important criteria were:

1. The language you speak
2. The God you pray to
3. Ethnicity or Tribe
4. A process that even considers folks like Bukola Saraki not Northern enough


Will have the temerity to accuse anyone else of threatning the cohesion of the country.

Atiku by taking part in the Ciroma process and benefiting from it lost any moral right to lecture anyone else on Unity. He has slaughtered his honour and any National appeal he had on the altar of desperation.

I call on all Southerners, Middle Belters and Yes Hausa-Fulanis from the core North who recognise that this is not how any country should choose a leader in the 21st century to stand up against this madness.

Vote for any other candiate who does not subscribe to Adamu Ciroma's version of Nigeria but Atiku Abubakar must be defeated. Adamu Ciroma is still stuck in 1957. The man must be told 50years are not 50days and Nigeria has come a long way!!!!!!!!!!

gbammmmm

u are very wise, may ur children give u peace as u seek peace for the nation


atiku ia a disgrace to us northerners so has jonathan is a disgrace to the whole nigeria

this people are corrupt and should not even get to abuja not to say aso rock

alj harem:

gbammmmm

u are very wise, may your children give u peace as u seek peace for the nation


atiku ia a disgrace to us northerners so has jonathan is a disgrace to the whole nigeria
this people are corrupt and should not even get to abuja not to say aso rock

Good.
Now, you know your choices.
Pick one disgrace out of both.

Too bad. You and I do not get to have a say in any part of it.
Can you please tell us something new.
Nigeria is only getting what it can afford at best at this time.
All we can do right now is keep taking our water pills to ward off the evils associated with high blood pressure.

jason12345:

my brother, education given to the so called southerners is a waste of money and time! haba, are they that daf.t i don't know why they think they are smart just to look silly at the end of the day??

to onlytruth, udeuze and co

WE SHALL SEE!!!

That just about sums it up for me too.
My ring-side seat has been purchased.
This is going to be the most interesting s-election in Nigerian history.
I am loving it.

fstranger:

[size=28pt]A Y A K A T A B O N G O [/size]

“More grease to your elbow” or simply “more grease.” This is the default expression many illiterate abokis deploy when they want to say “bravo” or “well done” or just express applause for a nice job. It is certainly a distortion of the antiquated British expression “more power to your elbow,” which is derived from Irish English.

The correct phrase is more power to your elbow!
one can grease a palm not an elbow

Thank you ma.
Any contribution to this topic?

You have some deep-seated issues and I certainly hope I am not one of them.
Anytime I log on, you are right there.
Are you an omni-troublesome goddess?
Only a little girl will have this kind of time on her hands when her parents have gone to bed.
I know I am handsome, and even little girls like you find me attractive too.

This aboki only deals with the 'big' girls. Preferrably over 40 with a husband, job and a couple of kids.
Not little girls or 50-somethings looking for sponsorship on the cyber airways like Ilankwadi.

The world is my witness. A teenager is making advances at me on NL.
Allah is my witness too.

Goodnight ma. I have a wife.
Allah be praised.

He said: “Why are our budgets not being implemented?  [size=14pt]Why has the money in our Excess Crude Account disappeared at a time when oil prices have been way above the benchmark used for our budget estimates[/size]?  Why are our foreign reserves being depleted to dangerous levels leading to rating agencies downgrading our status?
“[size=13pt]Why is this government quickly dragging us back to indebtedness after we worked so hard and sacrificed so much in the past to pull ourselves out of debt[/size] slavery?

I am not a fan of PDP, least of all a fan of Atiku, but the above questions beg for answers. Does anyone has an answer?

GEJ 4 PRESIDEO, atiku 4 Ambassador

Blazzay,The north will  NEVER SMELL POWER IN NIGERIA AGAIN.There is nothing you can do.Go and hit your big head on a rock.Nothing Changes.GEJ will floor Atiku and am sure you are intelligent enough to know.I will refer you to my comment after the presidential Elections next year and we know who sits at Aso Rocks.

Go and do your Mathematics,South -West,GEJ,South-South,GEJ,South-East,GEJ,Middle Belt,GEJ,North (Borno, Bauchi ,Kaduna, Taraba) all sure captured areas for GEJ.How do hell do you think Atiku will win?

The North can go and form their own Republic and Atiku can rule till the end of the world.

i am afraid of all the people deceive people **pDp** aspirant face. though i am not into politics now.if i ve to vote any sil in pdp again i will vote old hiden tfy OBJ, sure notin good will come to 9ja from pdp, 4me i de make moni de go

Alh Atiku is nobody in PDP of today.

I'm too sure the PDP Presidential Primaries will definitely not be a stroll in the park for Goodluck Jonathan. For this guy(ATIKU) to have contested on the platform of AC in 2007, readmitted through the backdoor to the PDP and finally clinching the Northern Consensus Candidate(defeating the Evil Genius) ticket reaffirms the Strength of the PDM(Peoples Democratic Movement) in the PDP. That (PDM) was the Shehu Yaradua's Political Machinery that ensured the success of OBJ clinching the ticket  in 1999 as well as sweeping the Presidential Polls.

My feelings that Jonathan will loose in the primaries is based on assumptions such as;

1) Jonathan is perceived to be OBJ's third term ambition in disguise
2) Jonathan is ill prepared for the daunting challenges of good governance ahead (None of his actions/policies has proven otherwise till date)
3) These Northerners will rally round to prove a point to the whole nation that they still have ONE voice despite what OBJ did to that Region under his 8years tenure.

Its a typical case of CORRUPTION(Atiku) versus INCOMPETENCY(Jonathan). In my own opinion, i want Jonathan to lose the primaries for him to serve a great umpire in the General Elections. Then these corrupt politicians will know NIGERIANS still have ONE voice like the did back in HOPE 93(June 12) and vote out this Vision-less, Corrupt, Greedy, Lack of Purpose PDP. I'm appealing to all Nairalanders to all partake in the forthcoming voters registration exercise. It is now or never.

PDP is doomed to fail therefore GEJ should move to another political party and continue with his campaign.

I think President Jonathan should stay in PDP and go for primary election and let see the outcome first.

Zoning of presidency is anti-democratic; any man from any region should be able to contest and win. I am in full agreement with @mikeansy.

GEJ WILL WIN, NOTHING FIT STOP AM.ATIKU IS WASTING HIS TIME.  It is an Irony that  he wants to contest under the same party he challenged in Court after the last Election.The odds are to much.He can never win.Please,be analytic.I am so confident.Atiku will not win.

He has no line to draw.

No character to defend.

Civil servant that is richer than a state(kudos to high-tech corruption in NCS).

Is that the man that wants to draw battle line?

I will rather cast 100 vote for Ribadu than for A-THEIF-FOOL.

Here is the rub:

If Atiku wins the PDP primaries, Goodluck Jonathan and his supporters will decamp to another party and run for the presidency on that platform. GEJ will release a statement like “in accordance with the wishes of millions of Nigerians who have pleaded with me to serve in this office, I have decided to contest the presidency on the platform of XYZ party”.

If Jonathan wins the PDP primaries, Atiku and his crew will move to another party and contest on that platform citing reasons such as “Jonathan is a beneficiary of zoning and shouldn’t have contested in the first place”.

At the end of the day, I think Jonathan will win the general elections proper because the north will have at least 2 candidates, namely, Buhari and Atiku and maybe 3 candidates if Ribadu can secure the ticket of his party. This will split the northern votes. To date, an incumbent has never lost an election (or as some critics would say “a rigging contest”) in the history of Nigeria, so this is also in Jonathan’s favour. I also think that Jonathan will capture most of the votes in the south due to the sentiments of many southerners who see this election as North vs South tussle.

Just like I have always stated,it is too early for an ordinary citizen to decide who to vote or for any non-political organization to endorse any candidate.Let us wait till the end of their campaign before we draw our final conclusion.If the votes were to be cast today,I will cast for GEJ but I cannot say for now that I will vote for him in 2011.I am looking forward to him being man enough to leave PDP and found a new Nigeria.

Anyone who seriously beleive this Northern failure called ATIKU have anything to offer Nigeria is deluded. He has no political principle, he will join any party who can offer him the flag bearer to become President.

We shall see.

@Blazy,a reasonable person will not talk d way u open up ur mouth.what has Atiku done 4 dis nation wen he ws a vicepresident.Dnt u knw dat he ws not wel recognize wen he ws vice president.do you know why,because of his 419 attitude.GEJ Is an humble man and wel recognize in dis world dan so call Tout Atiku.zoning shud nt b our issue.we need a cool headed man dat know what is doing dam jst making empty promises like Atiku.ATIKU will fail and lose.@Alj harem,do u hv a candidate dat u want to use to sit at Aso Rock?@TESKYG May God bless u with much wisdom.u talk well my bro.we shudn't deceive ourself.let take d percentage of all d contestant,u get to see dat Gej has d highest.GEJ CARY GOOOO.GOD PUNISH ALL D BAD BELEEEE.[color=#000099][/color]

Nothing is sure until then! but im certain abt GEJ being the presido, Not 2 ways abt it, Na just 1