TWO presidential candidates yesterday defended their integrity against President Goodluck Jonathan’s threat to expose their anti-democratic credentials and record of corruption.

Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) flag bearer Nuhu Ribadu and his Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) counterpart, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari , took exception to the virulent attack aimed at creating a hollow in their public service record. Ribadu described the President as a drowning man beset by fear of imminent failure at the poll.

Gen. Buhari chided Dr Jonathan for making an unguarded statement, adding that he was dragging the office of the President in the mud.

Besides, he raised many questions, which he said Dr. Jonathan should answer.

The duo, who also challenged the President to either tender evidence of lack of their uprightness or an unreserved apology, said the resort to "cheap blackmail" was unbecoming of the holder of the highest political office in the land.

The President, who at the weekend dismissed the anti-corruption posturing of Ribadu and Buhari as "hypocritical" and "self-serving", accused them of wrong posturing in the public, stressing that evidence of their misdemeanor and unwholesome conduct in public office cast them in the mould of tainted politicians.

The Director of Research and Publicity, Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), Mike Omeri, challenged Buhari to explain his handling of the controversy triggered by the 52 brief cases stuck with currency in 1984 when he was Head of State.

He alleged that Buhari’s Aide-de-Camp was involved in the movement of the suits into the country without passing through the Customs check points for clearance, adding that that attitude smacked of money laundering.

Omeri also doubted Ribadu’s anti-corruption credentials, saying that the politicians he once berated for corruption have now become his political benefactors and godfathers.

Ribadu described the remarks as the vituperations of a drowning man, who is afraid of his more qualified rivals.

The director of Ribadu/Adeola Campaign Organisation, Ibrahim Moddibo, said in a statement that the ACN presidential candidate cannot be threatened by unguarded presidential statements.

He urged Jonathan to produce evidence that Ribadu was not upright as the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Moddibo said: "The ACN presidential candidate, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, cannot be threatened. The utterance is that of a drowning man. President Jonathan should apologise for failing Nigerians."

Buhari’s spokeman, Yinka Odumakin, described the allegation of corruption against the former Head of State based on the fabled 53 suitcases as a "thoughtless charge", not borne out of painstaking research, adding that the resort to propaganda and falsehood is a mockery of the President’s doctorate degree.

Odumakin denied Buhari’s involvement in any corrupt act, pointing out that the true identity of the suit cases were not properly portrayed to the public by the media.

Absolving the retired General of any blame, he said: "In 1984, the Emir of Gwandu whose son was ADC to General Buhari was returning to the country from overseas. The Head of State, on learning of his arrival, asked his son to go and receive him at the airport as they were only playing squash at the time. Coincidentally, the Nigerian Ambassador to Libya at the time, Dr Tahir Waziri, arrived at the same time with the Emir with his three wives and 16 children. They all came with their belongings as he was coming home to take up a new appointment as Chief of Protocol to the Head of State.

"It was the suitcases of the family of 20 that were counted as belonging to the Emir and falsely presented to the public. General Buhari has over the years asked those who have questions over the matter to go to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who was at the Head of Customs Operations at the airport on the day. Now, we are further suggesting this as a research topic for a doctoral thesis by the President when he hands over on May 29, 2011."

Odumakin said the President’s threat to expose Buhari was consistent with previous failed attempts by "his godfathers in PDP" to rope him into controversies that could mar his soaring public image since 2002 when he threw his hat in the ring against the ruling party.

He said the President, and not Buhari, has questions to answer on his conduct in office to convince Nigerians that he is above board.

Odumakin raised some posers. He said:

•"Any explanation on the several billions of naira which DSP Alamieyeseigha left in Bayelsa coffers as at the time of his impeachment, which was allegedly squandered in months by Jonathan’s administration without anything to show for it?

•"Who presided over the Federal Executive Ccouncil (FEC) meeting in October 2009 where a 4km runway at Abuja Airport was awarded for N64b? The late President Yar’Adua was already in Saudi Hospital as at the time.

•"What happened to the $30b Yar’Adua left in the excess crude account that is virtually empty now? and

•"How come it is only Nigeria under Jonathan whose foreign reserve is depleting among oil producing nations at this time of high increases in prices of oil products?"

The spokesman said the President was afraid of being subjected to a probe after vacating power.

Odumakin went on: "We understand Jonathan is scared of General Buhari’s promise to check out what happened to the billions of dollars the ruling PDP has sunk in to the power sector to give Nigeria further darkness, instead of light, because he has supervised that sector in the last four years.

"No amount of cheap shots will stop the change Nigeria awaits from ensuring that Nigerians enjoy regular power supply, starting from finding out what the PDP did to put the light out so that money never pours into procuring darkness in our country again."

Ribadu is as corrupt as the word corruption and a thief who steals while using his left hand to amass money from other coffers. He shouts you down when you want to expose him.