In spite of blurred ideological positions, I place the CPC as a far right grouping as will inevitably be manifest if it attains power at the federal or state levels. All power is vested in a shadowy, unelected Board of Trustees populated by Buhari’s inner core and it is inconceivable that anyone challenge Buhari, Hamma and Galadinma within the party. None of these three individuals has sterling democratic credentials! The CPC’s manifesto includes some promises-devolution of power to states and local governments; removal of constitutional immunity from public officers; transparency and accountability; a target of 10 percent minimum annual GDP growth; modernisation of agriculture; and investments in infrastructure, amongst others. However the manifesto resembles a laundry list of “attractive” promises with little enunciation of how they will be achieved. Nevertheless the existence of such commitments is a fair start


in 1983, Buhari/Idiagbon became famous for coming down heavily against the Nigerian press, making the report of truth a very serious offence in the country, not many will for get the terrible situation of Tunde Thompson and Nduka Irabor of the Guardian who were imprisoned for making a report on the Government. The Buhari/Idiagbon regime also executed Bernard Ogedengbe, Bartholomew Owoh and Lawal Ojulope for an offence committed by them as alleged by the regime after a national debate in spite of public pleas, the execution of these gentlemen were made possible by a retroactive decree courtesy of Buhari/Idiagbon regime.


Buhari and his Deputy would again promulgate another Decree called Decree Number two (DN2) of 1984 which made it possible for Tunde Idiagbon to detain anybody whether such person is a citizen of the country or foreigner, this decree stripped the court of law of the powers to challenge the reason why such person is being detained. In essence, the decree did not recognize the significance of the judiciary but was merely interested in achieving its aims of dictatorial tendencies. In what would later follow, the world became amused to hear the verdicts of 125 years imprisonments handed down to the regime suspects.

Buhari was also noted to have utilized excessive force in handling drug peddlers caught, as he issued death penalties to them in what political commentators believed should not have attracted death sentences, still death was the fate of several of these suspects in laws that resembled that of Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations.

The tactics of the Buhari/Idiagbon regime became too harsh for the survival of the people, with arbitrary creation of decrees to lead the regime but promulgated to harshly lure the Nigerian public into playing into the waiting ready-made hand of the regime. Victims who became preys of these draconian decrees were mostly detained and made to remain inside prisons for as many years as Buhari and Idiagbon pleased

the Buhari regime purged the uppermost echelon of the Armed Forces, retiring all officers of the rank of Major General equivalent or above at the time of the coup. But that was not all. Some lower ranking officers, including Captain M Bala Shagari, the former President's son were also retired. In time to come his junior brother, Musa, would also be thrown out of the AirForce Secondary School in Jos. Buhari detained most political leaders of the Second Republic, accusing them of indiscipline and profligacy.

The State Security (Detention of Persons) Decree Number 2 of 1984 gave the Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters (Major General Idiagbon) the power to detain anyone labelled a security risk for up to six months without trial. Decree Number 4 of 1984 was promulgated to prevent journalists from reporting news that could potentially embarrass government officials, Some high visibility special interest groups, including the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), ran a foul of the government and were outlawed. The Labour Congress was banned from undertaking strike action.

In July 1984, in what was clearly a high risk move, the Buhari government - allegedly assisted by Israeli intelligence - unsuccessfully attempted to kidnap Alhaji Umaru Dikko, self-exiled 2nd republic Transportation Minister, from a flat in London. He was grabbed while taking a stroll, bundled into a van, intubated and placed on ventilator support supervised by an Israeli anesthesiologist, then placed into a crate and taken to Stansted airport outside London. Just before embarkation on a Lagos bound cargo plane suspicious British Police and customs officers - already alerted by Dikko's assistant who witnessed the kidnap from her window - aborted the heist. The incident created a diplomatic storm and even resulted in tit-for-tat seizures of Nigerian and British Airways aircraft in London and Lagos. High Commissioners to both countries were withdrawn - and were not reinstated until February 1986.

To address economic issues, Buhari introduced austerity measures. He closed the country's borders - which were not reopened until March 1st, 1986 - and expelled illegal aliens. Severe limitations were placed on imports. Smuggling and foreign exchange offenses were viewed as acts of economic sabotage - with severe penalties. Unfortunately, accompanied by high inflation, these measures made business onerous for import-dependent local businesses. Many workers were retrenched in the public and private sectors at a time prices of elementary food items, caused in part by famine, were rising.

Separately, the Buhari government - or agents purportedly acting on its behalf - humiliated several important personalities and opinion leaders in the country. The O'oni of Ife and Emir of Kano were publicly cautioned and restricted to their domains after they paid a visit to Israel, a country with which Nigeria did not have diplomatic relations at the time, dating back to OAU actions in solidarity with Egypt during the 1983 Arab-Israeli war. A team of soldiers was sent to the Park Lane residence of Chief Awolowo in Apapa where they proceeded to ransack the premises, searching for nothing in particular. Sheikh Mahmoud Gumi, a reverred moslem cleric, was allegedly removed from chairmanship of the Nigerian Pilgrims Board, his salary terminated and official car impounded - ostensibly because he disagreed with the decision to execute cocaine traffickers.


There's this popular saying that
'You can take a man out of the ghetto but you can't take the ghetto out of the man"

I have found saying relevant because it applies beyond the context of "ghetto" to other facets of life.

THINK BEFORE YOU VOTE.

In spite of blurred ideological positions, I place the CPC as a far right grouping as will inevitably be manifest if it attains power at the federal or state levels. All power is vested in a shadowy, unelected Board of Trustees populated by Buhari’s inner core and it is inconceivable that anyone challenge Buhari, Hamma and Galadinma within the party

This clearly indicates the rise of dictatorship in Nigeria again!!