i support only if the debates are not staged where questions are told them before hand and they go cramming answers. let them be spontaneous unbiased questions. we need an 'helen thomas' kind of questions and hear the intelligent ones make sense, if any

There is a governorship debate coming up in Lagos on the 2nd of march (7pm-9pm), organized by channels tv and thisday newspaper, it's between Fashola, Dosumu, Randle, Yotomi and one more candidate, so does calling for Fashola's debate should know that one is already prepared even though he had one with Dosunmu of PDP already.

Agreed, perhaps Fashola wasn’t the right person to advocate for a presidential debate! Nevertheless, the need for a debate cannot be over emphasised irrespective of who calls for it. Voters deserve to watch contenders battle it out against each other in an organised presidential debate. It would enable the electorates to make up their mind and probably lessen the backward attitude of voting based on ethnicity/religion/etc. I don't know why GEJ disciples are quick to dismiss this standard democratic practise. Is there something being shielded here?

A load of agbero crap as usual.

It isn't in Fashola's station to demand a presidential debate. He is neither an ACN leader at national level, nor is he ACN's presidential candidate. In fact (for the umteenth time) he makes Ribadu look like a fool.

What sort of organisation is ACN that is seems any clown can jump up and usurp the others offices.
Is Ribadu merely an impotent decoration in a regional party, so much so that a mere governor usurps him? Daft.

By the way, if Fashola is so concerned about good governance, her should stop selling Lagos state to himself and Tinubu. He should also take his flower planting to abandoned areas like Ikororodu and Epe, before inflicting the wider country with his foolish comments.

wetin dem give this guy chop? So no one or group is allowed to demand for a presidential debate except he pr she is the head of a party. I have never seen this specimen gullible servitude. NTA/ NUJ/ NLC/ INEC should do the nation a favour by giving the aspirant opportunity to sell themselves.

Its high time we demanded such activities to test the capabilities of our presidential candidates on a "real-time" basis (not listening to prepared bull-droppings). We need a good president not necessarily with "luck".

karpenter:

Agreed, perhaps Fashola wasn’t the right person to advocate for a presidential debate! Nevertheless, the need for a debate cannot be over emphasised irrespective of who calls for it. Voters deserve to watch contenders battle it out against each other in an organised presidential debate. It would enable the electorates to make up their mind and probably lessen the backward attitude of voting based on ethnicity/religion/etc. I don't know why GEJ disciples are quick to dismiss this standard democratic practise. Is there something being shielded here?

disagreed! I dont think there should be a criteria for that -the populace can demand that, after all he is going to vote. And if there should be a criteria he should qualify- I presume he is a leader in ACN and a governor. my opinion!

tlops:

disagreed! I dont think there should be a criteria for that -the populace can demand that, after all he is going to vote. And if there should be a criteria he should qualify- I presume he is a leader in ACN and a governor. my opinion!

Seconded. Fashola is a Nigerian citizen. Every Nigerian deserves the right to know the difference between every candidate who's asking for his/her vote.

good idea.

honeric01:

There is a governorship debate coming up in Lagos on the 2nd of march (7pm-9pm), organized by channels tv and thisday newspaper, it's between Fashola, Dosumu, Randle, Yotomi and one more candidate, so does calling for Fashola's debate should know that one is already prepared even though he had one with Dosunmu of PDP already.

Good, Fashola can keep his loose lips busy in debates at his level.

All over the World, it is standard practice that opposition presidential candidates challenge the ruling President to a debate.
So far, Ribadu, Buhari, Utomi etc have all kept sealed lips, even though GEJ has indicated months ago that he will take up any such challenge.

Beaf:

Good, Fashola can keep his loose lips busy in debates at his level.

All over the World, it is standard practice that opposition presidential candidates challenge the ruling President to a debate.
So far, Ribadu, Buhari, Utomi etc have all kept sealed lips, even though GEJ has indicated months ago that he will take up any such challenge.

Mr man, Fashola has the right to ask for whatever he's asking for from all the presidential candidates, he's a Nigerian before a governor, so respect his fundamental human right to choice, expression and most importantly opinion.

As for GEJ asking for a debate, can you show us where he said so? we're not talking about that yeye PDP debate shit oo, a debate is still on the request line from the champions daily and GEJ is yet to accept the request oo.

honeric01:

Mr man, Fashola has the right to ask for whatever he's asking for from all the presidential candidates, he's a Nigerian before a governor, so respect his fundamental human right to choice, expression and most importantly opinion.

As for GEJ asking for a debate, can you show us where he said so? we're not talking about that yeye PDP debate poo oo, a debate is still on the request line from the champions daily and GEJ is yet to accept the request oo.

I didn't say GEJ asked for a debate, its not done anywhere in the World that the sitting President challenges for a debate, he can't cheapen himself. It is always opposition presidential candidates that call for a debate.

What I said is that GEJ indicated that he will accept a debate after the primaries when Atiku kept demanding it very rudely:

"presidential debates take place all over the world, but a candidate will emerge before a debate.
Somebody is challenging me as if it is a wrestling bout"

-GEJ

^^^^^^
Petition for The 2011 Nigerian Presidential Debate
Opened on December 06, 2010 | Contact Petition Author

The Green Label Project beseech Nigerians home and abroad, including Youths,Politicians, Human rights activists, public intellectuals, Nigerian citizens and other Youth movements to support a global petition for the commencement of an unbiased Presidential debate geared towards accountability and transparency.

With the biased electoral systems and politics as a simple quest for politicians to grab power, most candidates hardly even think through what they would want to offer the people except the general phrases of promises of a ‘good life’—power, security, education, health, roads, water supply, housing, etc. Some even go to the length of employing the use of consultants who prepare glossy ‘programmes’ that promise Eldorado, without any slightest idea of what it would cost and how and from where the money would come.

In summary Nigerian politics today appears to have been still born. The colonial era politics of tribalism and corruption has persisted to the present day. In order to improve the state of Nigerian politics and in turn the fortunes of our country, the focus must shift from the discussion of personalities to the discussion of the issues that affect its 150 million citizens. A fair and frank presidential debate, with the cooperation of the media, would be a good step in cajoling our presidential candidates into facing these issues as well as paving the way for people participation and accountability to the masses.

We, the undersigned, call on every Nigerian far and wide to join this cause in bringing about accountability through the Nigerian presidential elections and to help bring about positive change in Nigeria

http://www.petitionbuzz.com/petitions/thegreenlabelproject

Beaf:

I didn't say GEJ asked for a debate, its not done anywhere in the World that the sitting President challenges for a debate, he can't cheapen himself. It is always opposition presidential candidates that call for a debate.

What I said is that GEJ indicated that he will accept a debate after the primaries when Atiku kept demanding it very rudely:

2011: Dele Momodu challenges Jonathan to debate

BY DAPO AKINREFON
PRESIDENTIAL candidate of National Conscience Party, NCP, Bashorun Dele Momodu, has told President Goodluck Jonathan to brace up for debates on the state of the nation. Bashorun Momodu said the debate was imperative because of the dwindling fortunes of the nation’s economy.

In a statement by National Coordinator of Dele Momodu Presidential Campaign Organisation, Mr Ohimai Godwin Amaize, the NCP candidate argued that “since President Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan joined the presidential race, the business of governance has been abandoned for the giddiness of a re-election campaign.”

He also argued that “every move of the president betrays his fixation on power and the fact that he has completely lost control over the issues affecting our nation. Nothing tangible has been achieved by the PDP government in 12 years and the little that we could have conceded, like the wiping off of our external debts, has now been reversed under President Jonathan’s administration.”

He, however, accused PDP administration of the depletion in the nation’s external reserves, adding “our external debts have risen astronomically. Our reserves have been dangerously depleted. Our excess crude sales have been hurriedly spent on pacifying recalcitrant governors. Security has become worse. Infrastructure remains comatose.”

Aside this, he berated the Federal government for the way and manner education is being treated with “irresponsible disdain.”

He said “no one seems to know who’s in charge of our country. Our president is leading us on the road to Golgotha and all he can do is to play politics of divide and rule by employing primordial sentiments.”

Speaking further, he maintained that “the world has moved beyond this state of backwardness. The world is today being ruled by the distinguished men of ideas and not by tribal warlords.”

On the need for Nigerians to resist what he described as ‘clueless leaders’ by voting them out in the 2011 elections, he said “we need leaders who can compete in the new world.”

“The presidential candidate of the National Conscience Party (NCP), Bashorun Dele Momodu is challenging President Jonathan as well as other presidential candidates to prepare for a series of serious debates where all critical issues affecting Nigeria will be debated with the intellectual dynamism of leaders who understand the problems of our nation and possess the practical solutions that will redeem our nation from the last horrible 12 years of the PDP government,” he stated.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/01/2011-dele-momodu-challenges-jonathan-to-debate/

2011 Presidential Debate: Jonathan Goodluck, Ribadu, Buhari & Co.
Posted: February 4, 2011 - 18:24
Posted by siteadmin
By Sunday Njokede

Boom! Jonathan bounced to the debate podium and took the microphone away from the standing cradle and holding it as a disc jockey, he told the audience that PDP is a women-friendly party that’d field and appoint more women as never – surpassing patronage from other parties.

President Jonathans’ wife was seen nodding her head in a renewed approval in support of what her man had just said. The audience at the debate venue were amazingly sceptical to the open hypocrisy of our president so they wonder if Jonathan has gone to take a course on ‘political spinning’ from erstwhile British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Blair leadership was regarded very high on spinning as per how they sexed up reports and dossiers tailoring them as in good faith while they were loosely porous and utter lies – but nonetheless they attacked Iraq as the highpoint.

A former USA diplomat present at the debate who had been studying Nigerian politics dare stood up and told Jonathan point-blank that his thesis about PDP women friendliness is hype. He took a special exception to the recently concluded PDP presidential primary where the lone woman contender Mrs Jubril scored just one vote for herself. In the aftermath of outvoting her by Machiavellian designs and rigging expertise, Nigerian women have learnt their lessons that PDP has ‘no vacancy’ for them and in effect, women have started leaving PDP en masse pitching their tents with other political parties. Even before PDP presidential selection charade, a forwarding-thinking woman as Dora Akunyili has decamped to alternative party. She was not deceived by the sweet but empty campaigns of Patience Goodluck soldiering for more women in politics. Underrate any woman or women in the collective at your own peril!

President Jonathan has had bellyful of churning Buhari successes so he’s set to mud him up terribly. In fact PDP sees Buhari in the fashion of a political aficionado. To them, he has done everything right that PDP has done wrong since 1999. He chose a like-minded very popular, pro-masses, ant-Establishment and equally incorruptible man as his 2i/c. He has female Stella Lebi as a spokesperson even as the male one Yinka is a Media personality – unlike the guttersnipe of a spokesman who drove onetime Foreign Affairs minister away from her work. Plus, Buhari mixes and mingles with progressives as the SNG and co. groups. Buhari has become the darling of Nigerians and further internationalists who think that he is more embraced both by lower people and straight upper class clique.

Miffed by Buharis' tall order of achievements for so short a time, Jonathan pumped up his bile attacking Buhari as a religious fanatic who’s only romancing Bakare to strengthen up his ‘rotten’ religious deviancy. Just then, would-be president Ribadu opened his eyes in wider amazement as if agreeing alongside Jonathan that Buhari is an unrepentant religious bogey man fanatic. Buhari was unperturbed by such definition of him but his vice Bakare was seriously embarrassed in utmost on how dirty politics could be for a starter. For once he thought if it weren’t better he return to pastoring. But however, he steeled up his mind and concluded he has seen it all in life and he’d be a rock in politics as he was a pastor. Although Jonathan had much to say, his time was up so he hurried away from the podium. But that was after he had wowed the debate audience that he’d concentrate on building more railway to upping train transport because tyres from heavy-duty vehicles are responsible for spoiling our roads.

Good evening ladies and gentlemen! Said Buhari with no false modesty attached to it. I must begin by saying that our president has buccaneered our statecraft into injury time that Nigeria needs a rescue team and by special grace of ‘God’ Tunde Bakare and I have come to give and nurture Nigeria with a new lifeline. Be rest assured my fellow countrymen and women, boys and girls! He intoned with cautious but positive optimism. As a man of few words and plenty actions, Buhari took Jonathan on by saying that everything about his regime is faked and corrupted out of awing proportion. He opened up confessing reading Sahara Reporters.com daily as do many politicians but none would actually accept they do; until they fall into trouble and need bailout that’s when they confess ever knowing SR as matter of fact. He boasted that his spokeswoman Stella Lebi signs all her blog off on Sahara Reporters with her real name while accusing Jonathan spokesman and his other co-persons as using dodgy pseudo to remain clandestine. He urged them to come clean on this and more - because, leadership is about putting your names and hands where Nigerians can see if they’re clean.

Buhari took a bitter swipe at the corrupt spending spree of Jonathan’s regime acknowledging that a responsible government should be as Spartan as old Greece humankind. This regime has chosen the same road as the Sodomites countrymen of old in spending our lean thrift on baseless and unseeable spirit projects he opine: punching the innocent air as if it were its fault; thereby exposing his thin hands unlike the bulky ones of IBB and OBJ. Not that Buhari is starving to death that is his nature. Just as he wanted to expatiate that he’s as sure as egg is egg to make it to Aso Rock and expose and punish corrupt ‘politically exposed persons’ with heavy hand, the debate moderator motioned him on that his time was up. Thank you all he said. So he left the podium graciously for Ribadu to debate on.

Ribadu enters the podium with somewhat shaky naivety not that Ribadu lacks lustre or not cut out to be a great leader. He is rock solid, incorruptible, and somehow trustworthy to his level best and a tested public server. His mourning per se arises from the ungovernable passion of Bola Tinubu to undermine him as presidential candidate; double-dealing away their party prospect for his private cravings same way OBJ’s self-aggrandisement has bedevilled PDP till this day.

That aside, Ribadu started with usual police catchphrase “who no dey no dey and when jungle mature everybody go answer iem papa name.” Meaning that he’s happy making it as presidential hopeful: a touchstone achievement to start with. PDP must be sacked this April he thundered into the microphone. You could already feel the avalanche of energy inside this young man. No wonder some people are capitalising on a more youthful candidate. But what good is a young candidate who’s corrupt from pillar to post, ceiling to floor? The debate audience were unanimous that it’s better to have an old incorruptible hand than a youthful crook as president. Most officeholders doing corruption in Nigeria are younger generation as Demiji Bankole and Jonathan Goodluck. Ribadu almost cursed Buhari for spoiling the union between his party and that of CPC but he contained himself knowing that by and by after the election he’d be working with Buhari to resuscitate Nigeria from PDP ruin. Just as Ribadu was bubbling hot to hit Jonathan and PDP harder, the debate moderator reminded him that his time was up.

Thank you all for coming, said the moderator with correct appreciation. The next debate would be a storm of activities he enthused conclusively.

Sunday Njokede writes from The European Union

http://www.saharareporters.com/article/2011-presidential-debate-jonathan-goodluck-ribadu-buhari-co

Beaf:

I didn't say GEJ asked for a debate, its not done anywhere in the World that the sitting President challenges for a debate, he can't cheapen himself. It is always opposition presidential candidates that call for a debate.

What I said is that GEJ indicated that he will accept a debate after the primaries when Atiku kept demanding it very rudely:

UTOMI CHALLENGES JONATHAN TO DEBATE ON PDP RECORDS

Utomi challenges Jonathan to debate on PDP records
Tuesday, 18 January 2011 00:00 By Joe Adiorho News – National

THE recently adopted Presidential Candidate of the Social Democratic Mega Party (SDMP), Prof. Patrick Okedinachi Utomi, has challenged President Goodluck Jonathan to an open debate on why the nation has not moved forward.

He said that the presidential debate has become necessary because a great number of Nigerians were becoming disenchanted with the political development in the country.
He added that the issues that are critical to debate are education, security, state of infrastructure, the economy and strategies.

He explained that, “the reason one country makes more progress than the other is human capital and Nigerian used to be known all over the world for its commitment to education, but today, it was no longer so.

Utomi called for the debate yesterday at a press briefing in Lagos. “I will like to see a debate start immediately on these issues. We should not wait for presidential debate to take place one week to the elections. The debate should start next week and it should be issue- based before we come to general presidential debates.

“I would like to suggest that we begin by running on the records of the party in power. I invite President Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, leader of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the its presidential flag bearer to join me in a debate on the records of the PDP sometime in the next one week,” he said.

He lamented that Nigerians were increasingly believing that, “democracy is not working in the country. According to him, “taking a look at what happened in the Delta State re-run election where I was told authoritative, in Warri, that a gun was pointed at the head of a National Youth Service Corps member, serving as an electoral officer and ordered to thumb print severally on the ballot papers, they do not believe that their votes will count. What happened there shows that we have fallen far below the poorest country in Africa and they were further frustrated by the fact that the Independent National Electoral Commission officials were totally helpless.
He also called on all progressive forces in the country to join him to establish a formidable vote protection army that will give meaning to the forthcoming elections.

He said that the process would involve the recruitment of able bodied and well-cultured youths that would be distributed, at least six persons in each ward throughout the country that would stand and serve as agents of all the political parties that would take part in the 2011 polls.
Utomi said that the goal of the project “is to ensure that these six persons would deprive anybody from unlawfully tampering with the votes already cast and thereby restoring confidence in the people that their votes will count”.

Utomi explained that with the electoral fraud that was perpetrated every now and then in the country, it is evident that it is a civilian coup that was occurring every four years that we conduct election.

“Nigerians will continue to be considered docile until something is done or something happens. What happened in Sierra Leone sometime ago was considered as the revenge of the poor, and in Nigeria, we have to organise ourselves so that Nigeria will not go the way of Somalia”.

http://www.nigerianbestforum.com/blog/?p=74995

In a statement by National Coordinator of Dele Momodu Presidential Campaign Organisation, Mr Ohimai Godwin Amaize, the NCP candidate argued that “[size=28pt]since President Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan joined the presidential race, the business of governance has been abandoned for the giddiness of a re-election campaign.”
[/size]
He also argued that “every move of the president betrays his fixation on power and the fact that he has completely lost control over the issues affecting our nation. Nothing tangible has been achieved by the PDP government in 12 years and the little that we could have conceded, like the wiping off of our external debts, has now been reversed under President Jonathan’s administration.

politicking while nigeria burns

just as some people have abandoned 'activism' for lies , political jobbery and sycophancy

Good