Nigeria needs more ‘rascals’ in govt •ACN replies Jonathan •Address issues, stop abusing -Fashola •You’re free to call yourselves rascals -Jonathan

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Written by Idowu Samuel, Shola Adekola, Leon Usigbe and Tolu Olamiriki Thursday, 10 February 2011

THE Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), on Wednesday, attributed its successful style of administration in the states under its control to the “rascally” tendency of its governors, which it said had been result-oriented.

The party said the states of the country at the moment required more rascally governors and president to take over Nigeria and change the face of the country.

The opposition party said this in response to the remarks credited to President Goodluck Jonathan during the kick-off of his campaign rally in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, on Tuesday, when he referred to the opposition groups as ‘rascals’, and vowed that the PDP would take over the South-West states soon.

The ACN, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, mentioned the case of Lagos State where it said a ‘rascal’ governor, Babatunde Fashola, had been touching the lives of the citizenry in the areas of security, good roads, education, standard medical care and others within a short time he has been governor.

He said within the same period, none of the non-rascally PDP governors had been able to match the feat of Fashola, more so as many of them were noted for little or no achievements, while many of then had nothing to show for being governors of their respective states.

It said: “The rascal in Edo, Adams Oshiomhole, has turned around the fortunes of a state which the PDP governors who preceded him in office could only have dreamt of, while the ‘rascals’ in Ekiti and Osun (Kayode Fayemi and Rauf Aregbesola respectively), who are new in the saddle, are already restoring hope to their people, who were literally battered and bruised by their usurper-PDP governors.”

ACN said while it would not want to match President Jonathan on the use of foul language, it will, however, advise him to remember that he remains the president of all Nigerians, not that of the PDP and its supporters, even when “he is giddy with excitement on the soap box.

‘’We believe that President Jonathan, in saying that the South-West region is too important to be left to rascals, is a victim of the vicious battering he received from his opponent as the two engaged in unprecedented mudslinging in their campaign for the PDP presidential ticket. It is common knowledge that both exhausted all the denigrating and demeaning words available as they tore at each other.

‘’But that battle is over and the president should sheathe his sword and refrain from using words that can only make him look unpresidential, no matter how tempting. Even as the presidential candidate of the PDP, he remains today the president of Nigeria. For that reason, we will not exchange words with him but concentrate on issues.

‘’The issues that will improve the lives of our long-suffering people — better education, world class infrastructure, improved living standard, decent wages, security of life and property, as well as the restoration of the dignity of Nigerians, among others — will dominate our campaign in the days ahead, not the use of foul language that has been patented by the president’s benefactor.’’

The ACN noted, however, that the PDP would be deceiving itself if it believed it could wrest from the ACN any of the states currently being controlled by the party, adding, “we think the PDP should be more concerned about losing more states to the ACN than wresting any from our party.

‘’If the insinuation is that the PDP will resort to the same rigging and brigandage which have brought the party nothing but disgrace, then those behind such thoughts should have a re-think, as Nigerians have decided that they will use all constitutional means to make sure their votes will count in April and in subsequent elections,’’ the ACN said.

Also, firing back at President Jonathan over the statement which has been described as unmanly was the Lagos State governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, during an interview with airport journalists at the presidential wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, on Wednesday.

President Jonathan made the statement, on Tuesday, while addressing crowd of supporters at the campaign ground of Mapo Hall in Ibadan, where he said “I can assure you that we will take back Lagos, Ekiti and Osun; we will control the entire South-West. Lagos is important to us and I am happy that we have presented our flag to a capable candidate, (Dr Ade) Dosunmu. The entire South-West is too important, too sophisticated and too educated to be in the hands of rascals.”

Fashola said the statement fell short of what was expected from the president of a country or a candidate seeking election to the number one position in a country like Nigeria.

He added that Lagos voters would not vote on the basis of luck, adding that he did not win the governorship on the basis of luck, but on clear manifestoes of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).

Also the Oyo ACN has condemned the statement made by President Jonathan on Tuesday.

This was contained in press statement issued and signed by the state publicity secretary, Matthew Oyedokun, and made available to the Nigerian Tribune on Wednesday.

The state chairman of the party, Chief Akin Oke, described the statement as reckless and unfortunate, and urged the president to tender an unreserved apology to the leadership of the ACN in the zone.

He advised President Jonathan to make his campaign issue-based and abstain from using gutter language, adding that “we are not surprised that the president could descend so low as to honouring criminals if he could issue statements from touts in the motor parks.”

The leadership of ACN, however, said the party was working round the clock to free Oyo and Ogun states from the shackles of the PDP.

In another development, the Labour Party, on Wednesday, urged President Jonathan to be mindful of his utterances on political issues, as it blamed him for referring to the governors of the ACN as rascals.

The party said President Jonathan should always remember that he had only won the PDP presidential ticket and not the presidential election and so could not afford to treat any section of Nigeria with disdain.

The party, in a statement signed by its national chairman, Chief Dan Nwanyan-wu, said no governor in the South-West deserved to be referred to as rascals other than the PDP governors.

Nwuanyawu said President Jonathan could not refer to the governor of Lagos and Ondo states as rascals, given their purposeful and focused governance.

He said the governments of Lagos and Ondo states had proved, over time, to be responsible and pro-people, while they had equally been credited with good conduct, service delivery, management of human and material resources.

Meanwhile, the presidency, while reacting to the series of comments by opposition on his statement, said though he did not mention names, anyone who wanted to ascribe the title to himself was free to do so.

Fielding questions from State House correspondents in Abuja, on Wednesday, presidential spokesman, Mr Ima Niboro, said “at no time did the president ascribe the rascal he mentioned to anyone.”