Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 - Politics (9) - Nairaland
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 11:27am On Sep 30, 2012 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 7:16pm On Oct 02, 2012 |
GenBuhari: [b][size=18pt]Buharinomics - General Buhari’s economic program marshaled out to salvage the nation in 1984 (- - -continued part 5) |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 9:56am On Oct 05, 2012 |
[size=18pt]ACCEPTANCE SPEECH BY GENERAL MUHAMMADU BUHARI, GCFR ON NOMINATION TO STAND FOR PRESIDENT ON THE PLATFORM OF C.P.C.[/size] Protocols. With gratitude to God Who has spared our lives to arrive at this momentous occasion of picking our new Party’s Candidate for President and Vice President for the 2011 elections. Our job today is to resolve to defeat PDP in all the elections coming up shortly. After a dozen years of bad governance, Nigerians deserve a change. We are offering that change. We are offering a better alternative to PDP. Mr. Chairman, members of the Board of Trustees, let me thank all those party supporters, party workers, officials and leaders in the 36 states and Abuja who have worked very hard voluntarily sparing your time and your own megre resources to ensure the success of this occasion and of our new party Congress for Progressive Change. I am humbled by the spontaneous support I have received since the formation of the CPC. Based on this tremendous support which has shaken other parties we are confident of victory during the coming elections. Mr. Chairman, let me, for the records, explain briefly why it was necessary for my supporters and I to leave ANPP and form another party. ANPP leadership from 2003 to the 2007 elections have exhibited very unprincipled behaviour in handling party issues. The leadership did not adhere to party rules, did not reciprocate loyalty to me as its candidate and appeared to be teleguided by the PDP. The same PDP which in the course of 2003 and 2007 elections organized its thugs to intimidate, maim and kill many of our supporters. And through the misuse of law enforcing agencies, PDP agents stole ballot boxes and stuffed them with illegal votes. In addition, PDP party thugs burnt houses and offices of ANPP supporters and finally forced INEC to rig the elections in the most blatant manner. Yet ANPP leadership decided to join the government which perpetrated these crimes against its supporters. When we went to court on the insistence of the party, ANPP leadership later abruptly withdrew their case at the courts challenging the results of the rigged elections and provided no support whatever to hundreds of ANPP candidates who went to court. Moreover, they jumped ship and joined the Government of National Unity (G.N.U.) for a mess of pottage. They left their supporters to their own devices. It was in the belief that ANPP leadership were not about to change that we decided to leave and form a fresh political party which will internal democracy, and will be based on principle and loyalty to its members. It neither was a decision taken neither lightly nor single handedly. It was as a result of nationwide consultation with members of the party, interest groups. Some of the advice received was voluntarily. I stand by and with the people for better or for worse; I stand by and with my supporters through thick and thin; I stand shoulder-to-shoulder with my followers and I will take the rough with the smooth; I will never abandon them no matter how long or how hard the going is. Let me remind all our supporters what I have told the Nigerian public on several occasions in the past: I am doing this not for myself alone but for many millions who have hope in me and my colleagues, and in our programmes for change that will save Nigeria. I shall continue on this course whatever the outcome of the coming elections. In our continuing efforts to widen our base of support we have tried hard – and we are still trying – to form bigger alliances. I have spoken, visited, received and related to several of leaders from the North, South-West, South-East and South-South in efforts to forge alliances. Several contact committees have engaged various Nigerian party leaders on the same mission. But we are still talking and are ready and willing to come to electoral agreements to get the PDP off the backs of Nigerians. Fellow delegates, the 2011 elections will likely determine the future of our politics, and perhaps our country. From 2003 to date we have been ruled by un-elected governments. This PDP government has conducted two elections whose integrity has been widely condemned. In fact, nobody but the government of PDP believes we are in a democracy. Where results were challenged in court the verdicts were downright dishonest thus making the judicial system itself culpable as collaborator to the electoral crimes perpetrated. The appointment of a new INEC management has been widely welcomed. Much is expected of them, but many things need to change to ensure successful, free and fair elections in 2011. The forces of change are becoming far more vocal and more powerful. These forces will ensure the CHANGE FOR GOOD that will save Nigeria. CPC is one of these forces. It is the biggest force for change in the country. I have seen the look in the eyes of thousands of ordinary people across Nigeria. They are not going to tolerate the status quo any longer. They will not allow business as usual anymore. The change we want immediately is in the quality of INEC personnel who will be employed at INEC Headquarters in Abuja and at the State capitals. These officials must be thoroughly vetted before being confirmed in their positions. In addition, care must be taken in carefully selecting and training the large number of ad hoc staff to conduct elections in the nearly 130,000 polling booths around the country. They will be the en and women who will count and announce the results. Their duty is to count correctly and announce the actual results. Our duty as member of CPC is to: Ø Get registered Ø Cast our votes and cast them early Ø Watch and guard our votes Ø Escort the votes to the collation centres Ø Ensure true results are announced. Fellow delegates, we are, through our Manifesto and Mission Statements soliciting the votes of Nigerians to bring about this CHANGE FOR GOOD. Our manifesto has been widely circulated and the main thrust of our policies is people-oriented and designed to attack our problems from the roots. Let us again, Mr. Chairman remind ourselves that this is a country blessed with dynamic people, abundant natural resources, a good spread of rainfall which makes it possible for every party of the country to produce bountiful harvests to feed its people. All that Nigeria needs to realize its dream of a rich and powerful nation is good purposeful leadership to lead us to the future that surely awaits us. http://elendureports.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1481&Itemid=58 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 8:00am On Oct 08, 2012 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 2:22am On Oct 14, 2012 |
God Bless the people's General. |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 6:43pm On Oct 23, 2012 |
GenBuhari: [size=18pt]Buharinomics - General Buhari’s economic program marshaled out to salvage the nation in 1984 (- - -continued part 6)[/size] |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 6:08am On Nov 28, 2012 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 2:45am On Dec 04, 2012 |
[size=18pt]Making Nigeria Work Once Again, by Muhammadu Buhari[/size] Published on Wednesday, 06 April 2011 21:31 Written by General Muhammadu Buhari It gives me great pleasure to have this opportunity of standing before you this morning to say a few words about our party and what plans we have for you and the nation in our manifesto. Let me therefore begin by welcoming all of you to the event. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the CPC Election Manifesto which sets out our election promises and plan of action. Its central and urgent message is that as Nigerians, we must restructure the country and change our ways. And in this there is an invitation to each and every one of us to come forward and join the struggle, so that together we take the destiny of this nation in our hands—and change it into a united, prosperous, caring, truly democratic Federal republic. But before we will be able to do this, we must secure, manage and govern the country in a way that releases the energies and potentials of our people and direct these to wholesome ends. Giving this direction is what a CPC government is here to do in order to arrest the nation’s aimless drift. In its 12 years of misgovernance the government of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, had bastardised the nation. In all this period, it has done very little that is right, even less that is proper, and nothing intrinsically useful or cost-effective. It was as if they only came to pauperise the nation; and it could be said that during their time, the only places that prospered were the cemeteries and the bank accounts of a thieving elite. People in their thousands died due to poverty, hunger, disease and violent crises and violent crimes, as custodians of the nation’s resources smiled their ways to the bank. The wealth, which would have alleviated the people’s poverty; the food, which would have satiated their hunger; and money for drugs, which would have restored them to health; and the resources for the maintenance of law and order, which would have ensured the security of the land, have all been siphoned by this insensitive leadership. As a result, today, we cannot sleep safely in our beds or drive in safety on our highways in safety. Without power, without water and without good roads, we lack all the things other normal societies take for granted. We all know the problems of this country, and we have known them for the past 12 years ago and before; but, apparently, it is only now that the PDP is becoming aware of them, saying that it will try to solve them. So, where was the so-called largest political party south of the Sahara during the last 12 years? What stopped people of the ruling party from giving the nation electric power, something they promised to do after six months of coming to power? What stopped them from securing the nation from communal, religious and political violence and from the new wave of terrorism? How many years do they need to do that? And after this glaring failure they even had the temerity to ask for your votes. How on earth can anyone consider giving his vote to the PDP? Who in his right mind will consider four more years of this open thievery? Who in his senses will elect four more years of betrayal of trusts? Or four more years of broken promises? Or four more years of a collapsed and collapsing system? Or four more years of economic mismanagement? Ladies and gentlemen, I am Muhammadu Buhari, and today I am 69 years old; and I am sure I don’t have to remind you that I have fought many battles in my life. I have fought drift and purposelessness in this nation. I have fought corruption and indiscipline. I have fought indolence and the betrayal of trusts. I have fought the Nigerian civil war and struggled for the unity of this country in many other ways. I have had the fortune and privilege of managing national resources in various capacities—as a military commander, as a state governor, as a minister, as head of the Petroleum Trust Fund, and as the head of state of this great country. And in all that I have been and done, I have never touched a kobo of public funds. I say this without pride and with all sense of responsibility and humility; but I challenge anyone in the race for the leadership of this country then or now to dare make the same claim. After being head of state, I am sure I could easily have retired into a life of comfort and ease as an elder statesman, as a contractor or as a beneficiary of any one of the nation’s many generous prebendal offerings. But that is not what I wish to do with my life. And so, if I don’t take any of these alternative courses of action, it should be clear that I am not in this for the love of office or for pursuit after personal glory or in order to achieve some personal goal. Far be it from me that this should be. I need nothing and I have nothing more to prove. I am in this solely for the love of my country and concern for its destiny and the fate of its people. And that is why, despite the many disappointments along the way, I am still in the struggle and will remain in it to the end. I have decided to dedicate the remainder of my life to fighting for the people of this country—until their right is restored to them. We call on you to join us and change the destiny of this nation. And change is what CPC is all about. I am sure you will all agree with me that the question is not whether there we should change, because change we must. The only questions remaining are determining the type of change and the speed with which that change will be implemented. To effect this, we have assembled a team of competent, experienced and patriotic Nigerians to become the vanguard of the change to get the country out the woods and away from the malaise that has kept it down. We are on a rescue mission to recreate Nigeria and transform it into a powerful and prosperous nation. Our focus will be on improving the efficiency of national economic management; and the reintroduction of national economic development planning and the plan to successfully manage change. The area of emphasis of our government will be on the following five: ensuring security, in which a CPC government will seek the disarmament of all criminal gangs in the nation and securing the entire polity; raising the standard of education and providing quality services at all its levels; the aggressive pursuit after youth development and youth employment generation; rehabilitating dilapidated infrastructure; and the total disarming of the Niger Delta, finding solutions to its social problems and laying down a comprehensive blueprint for the development of the area. Along the way, we also intend to make this nation accountable and corruption-free, and bring morality back to governance. We shall make this nation uncomfortable to those who do not wish to play by the rules. We shall challenge vested interests and erase unearned privileges. Propriety and legality will be our new watchwords; and, hopefully, in time this will become the new business as usual for the nation. It goes without saying that this nation must be set free—from the clutches of a corrupt culture that has stunted the growth and development of democracy. A CPC government will seek to entrench democratic values, uphold the rule of law, respect the independence of the judiciary, and enforce the political neutrality of public service. It is our undertaking that after just one term in office, a CPC government will entrench a new democratic culture that will be impossible to dismantle even by the most tough-minded anti-democrats. We have set our priorities and we shall pursue them relentlessly. I urge you to read our manifesto and see what we have planned for this nation. And when you do so, you will see why, in the circumstance, the only sensible thing to do—is to vote for my party, the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC. It is a young party but it has already set all the others to flight. It will change the way politics is practiced in this country. Our enterprise is truly an ambitious one. It is not just about winning an election: it is about restoring a sense of decency to our society. It is about taking pride in, and respecting, ourselves as human beings and consciously internalising democratic values. Unless we do this, development and true freedom will forever elude us and talents will never flower in the land. But if the answer is democracy, what exactly is the question? The question is: Why are we still not properly practicing it? And that is where CPC comes in—to provide the missing link. And with your support we shall begin to do just that in the next couple of weeks. Thank you very much for your patience and attention. Remarks by General Muhammadu Buhari, Presidential Candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, at the Public Presentation of the CPC Election Manifesto in Lagos , http://www.elombah.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6085:making-nigeria-work-once-again-by-muhammadu-buhari&catid=25:politics&Itemid=92 [img]http://3.bp..com/-tsjTnEY9SYw/TbB_1VLXsgI/AAAAAAAAAD8/wO4Y5Fo2ltI/s1600/Muhammadu_Buhari.jpg[/img]
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 1:06pm On Dec 12, 2012 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 4:16pm On Dec 15, 2012 |
GenBuhari: [size=18pt]Making Nigeria Work Once Again, by Muhammadu Buhari[/size] |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 5:42pm On Jan 04, 2013 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 2:12pm On Jan 23, 2013 |
[size=20pt]A Brief Encounter With General Buhari[/size] AT the time Buhari ruled, Enebeli Elebuwa was the face of Nigeria. He played Andrew, a comic, in a short propagandist documentary widely circulated through the government media particularly the NTA which was at that time the veritable vehicle of government propaganda with its Siamese twin, Radio Nigeria. This was way before the advent of privately owned radio and television stations. The NTA opened and closed with the national anthem and pledge. News was broadcast only at 9pm. There was no CNN. In the story, Andrew had planned to “check out” of Nigeria: there were no jobs. Power supply was erratic; fuel queues were long and snaky; essential commodities were being rationed and there was a draconian war against indiscipline. Three young men had been executed for peddling drugs. The decree that sealed their fate was non-existent at the time the offences were committed. A democratically elected government had been ejected by soldiers and civilian rule was nowhere in sight. A law forbade the possession of foreign currency and the naira exchange rate was frightening. Europe or America bore the only hope of survival for many young men and women. But right at the departure lounge, a voice of reason beckoned: only Nigerians could reverse this terrible and ugly situation. And if each and every Nigerian with the means to ameliorate the situation “checked out”, then doomsday was near. Andrew chose to stay. When Elebuwa later became popular and famous in home movies, those who knew him by his moniker stuck to that name. The reality on ground did not support an early resuscitation of the comatose nation. And Buhari was coming to Benin. An ample opportunity presented itself for us to confront the strongman. A little over a year before then, together with his majordomo, Tunde Idiagbon, Buhari had sacked Shehu Shagari’s government. At that time, Benin was literally teeming with radicals and ideologues of all hues and colours. No one would be intimidated. There was Tunde Fatunde, Festus Iyayi, Felix Orhewhere and a host of others. Outside the walls of the ivory tower there was Ohonbanmu, the Marxist ideologue who had just returned from a long sojourn in Germany and was ready to do battle. The students paraded Matthew “Matto” Urhoghide, Osaze “Pelebe” Ize-Iyamu, Evhi Eyeghre and Nnamdi Maduekwe. There was Thaddeus Alli and Kayode Thomas together with Isaac Ajayi, Onajide Onajiromu and Larry Ettah. Pelebe later became the SSG during Lucky Igbinedion’s time in Edo state while Larry Ettah today heads UAC. Inspiration was nearby and fear was unknown. Somehow, Buhari avoided the university preferring instead to commission some showpiece projects at the sister teaching hospital. He had played into our hands and confrontation would be inevitable. And so as medical students, we made an offer to Navy Captain Yinka Omolulu, a navy doctor who was at the time the helmsman of the teaching hospital in Benin. It was an offer he could not refuse. He must have had sleepless nights pondering the consequences of his decision to allow a small party of four of us to see the strongman and prince of the Daura emirate. We had headaches for a different reason: The radio and television were filled with congratulatory messages for a messianic Buhari who had come to save Nigeria and was visiting Bendel state. We also had no more bursary as Ogbemudia no longer called the shots at government house. And how were we going to fit all our demands into Omololu’s allotted five minutes. We rehearsed and even had a dress rehearsal with Dr. Alex Khadiri of physiology department playing Buhari. Khadiri later went to the senate representing the people of Kogi east during Obasanjo’s second coming. On that day, to Omololu’s horror, we demanded a private audience with Buhari. We had passed the point of no return and were ready to damn the fallout. You could hear a pin drop. The silence was louder than the clapping of thunder. With only his aide de camp by his side, the bespectacled general took us into a side room and firmly shut the door. Another mistake! Why couldn’t we just snuff the life out of this man and return Shagari to the mantle of leadership? The odds were in our favour. It was two against four, but the ADC was armed and so wise counsel prevailed. We asked him to justify his incursion into governance. We told him point blank that he was an illegal ruler and as illegitimate as could possibly be. Taken aback but quickly regaining his composure, his soldier’s training took hold of him. With a calm candour and demeanour and in as solemn as a voice could be, he walked us through the financial and economic quagmire of Nigeria since the advent of Shagari. He pointed out the rot in the management of the nation’s resources especially in the petroleum sector over which he had once presided. He enunciated the cracks that had begun to develop in the body polity and the existence of divisions along ethnic lines. There were hundreds of millions in private Swiss banks siphoned overnight. The foreign reserves were all but gone. Infrastructure had decayed and joblessness was in sight for young graduates. Even our teaching hospital was a glorified dispensary. The academia was being depleted of quality scholarship and faculty. Was this how we wanted to proceed? He availed us of a careful and meticulous plan he had put together to redeem Nigeria and asked us to watch him. The school authorities could do us no harm as we were not at liberty to reveal what transpired between us and the general. And we knew, none had the effrontery and bravado to ask Buhari. Should harm befall us and word filtered back to Buhari, the consequences could be dire. We were left to complete our studies. The gangling Fulani soldier had enthralled us. He had held us captive. We were mute as Buhari spoke. We watched in awe as he excused himself for as he told us, he had a job to do. A little over a year after this incident, Buhari was toppled by Babangida, the gap-toothed general from Minna. Then Sani Abacha, the dark goggled one followed after a brief interregnum that threw up Ernest Shonekan who never sat down for a day at the office. Today, seven reigns after Buhari, in the time of destiny’s child, Goodluck Jonathan, out of the four of us that met with Buhari, I am the lone one remaining in Nigeria. And Enebeli Elebuwa, Buhari’s face of Nigeria has died in an Indian hospital where he was ferried by a benevolent Delta state government after the country he loved turned him down. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/12/a-brief-encounter-with-general-buhari/ |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 9:18pm On Feb 07, 2013 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 3:42am On Feb 08, 2013 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 4:18am On Feb 08, 2013 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 4:49pm On Feb 16, 2013 |
[size=18pt]MUHAMMADU BUHARI: THE UNTIRING PERSONA AT 68[/size] By thewillnigeria.com Born on Thursday the 17th December, 1942 in Daura, Katsina state, to a Fulani Chief, Ardo Adamu of Dumurkol, a village near Daura, and Hajiya Zulaihatu, a Hausa woman. He was a Gambo or Leko, as he arrived after the death of his older twin siblings. It is what the Yorubas would refer to as Idowu. That is the story of the parenthood of Major General Muhammadu Yassim Yinusa Buhari, the officer gentleman who, at three critical times, was well positioned to amass wealth for himself illegally but did not. After attending primary schools at Daura and Mai’adua between 1948 and 1952, followed by a year stint at Katsina model school in 1953 and Katsina Provincial secondary school (now Government college Katsina) between 1956 and 1961; Buhari had a choice of training as a teacher, studying agriculture or joining the Army. He chose the profession of the arms. As a cadet, he was made a sergeant which was an early recognition of his leadership qualities by his superiors. www.nairaland.com/attachments/725348_buhari_parade_jpgcf420c430ac5cdb9a5c0fadf1e0fb509 It was in August 1975 that Muhammadu Buhari first came into national visibility when he was appointed Military Governor of the North Eastern by the Murtala Muhammed’s regime. After the death of the General Murtala Muhammed, the new Lt. General Olusegun Obasanjo government appointed him as the Federal Commissioner for Petroleum resources (March 1976-July 1978) and later, Chairman of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, June 1978-July 1978. It was during his stewardship at the Petroleum ministry that two of the nation’s refineries (Warri and Kaduna) were built. In 1983, the patriotic fervor of Buhari was rudely put to test when the Chadians, in a mindless expansionist adventure, invaded and occupied 19 islands in Lake Chad within Nigerian territory. As the General Officer Commanding (GOC) the 3rd armored corps, the then Brigadier Muhammadu Buhari successfully carried out a blockade forcing the return of the territories and thereafter pursued the Chadians as far as 50kms into Chadian territory. On an Internet discourse, Major-General (retired) Ishola Williams commented on this military feat thus: “He applied forward defense strategy at its best.” www.nairaland.com/attachments/726098_Buhari_jpgd50be5e2308ebe86c9271391021b0a5f Major-General Muhammadu Buhari bestrode the nation’s governance when he led the military putsch that overthrew the civilian regime of Alhaji Shehu Shagari. Prior to the take-over, the four-year-incursion of the civilian government had been horrific for Nigerians. The economy had been recklessly mismanaged to the extent that a chieftain of the ruling National Party of Nigeria, Alhaji Umaru Dikko, once asserted that there was no poverty in Nigeria because he had not seen any Nigerian feeding from the baggage dump! In his maiden speech, General Muhammadu Buhari left no one under any illusion that his regime came on a rescue mission from the executive brigandage of the civilian regime. As a last line, he opined: “This generation of Nigerians, and indeed future generations, have no country other than Nigeria. We shall remain here and salvage it together.” The 20-month era of strong leadership espoused what later became known as ‘Buharinomics’, which simply put is an admixture of frugality, probity, respect for contractual agreements, expunction of all covert or overt attempts at subjugating the Nigerian economy to world powers and above all, economic policy with Nigeria as the center-piece. It is therefore, without any whiff of equivocation to state that the boldest attempt in the last thirty years at alleviating the pains of the teeming masses was during the enactment of Buharinomics. It was not surprising that the inflation rate was lowered by more than 18 points, from 23.2% in 1983 to 5.5% in 1985! The Buhari regime rebuffed all entreaties by IMF and World Bank to devalue the naira, remove subsidies on services and increase pump price on fuel. It was arduous for the regime to cleanse the mess of the Shagari regime, which was characterized by unprecedented indiscipline –fiscal, institutional and governmental. With the mantra of War Against Indiscipline (WAI), a new direction was charted for Nigerians in ethical behavior in Public places. [img]https://www.nairaland.com/attachments/754004_General_Muhammadu-Buhari-1984_jpg807fb78f1366f42744d90196f32d264e[/img] With a persona that is hinged on self-abnegation, it was possible to insist on transparency within the polity. A military governor was relieved of his appointment for awarding N163, 000 (one hundred and sixty three thousand naira) contract without due consultation with the state executive council. The preceding politicians that corruptly enriched themselves were prosecuted and given long prison sentences. The former Director of NYSC, Col Peter Obasa and his accountant, Folorunsho Kila were found guilty and sentenced to 21years. Owing to the damaging effect of currency trafficking outside the Nation’s shores, the Buhari administration decided to change the colors of the currency notes in April 1984. This yielded the desired result as N5Billion excess liquidity was mopped off! As a backlash on this exercise, there was insidious story from a section of the media that the Buhari regime allowed the Emir of Gwandu, Alhaji Jokolo to bring in 53 suitcases during the currecy change, thereby insinuating a case of double standard. Let it be said from the onset, the opinion tenaciously held on to about this incident was what was sold to the unsuspecting Nigerian public by a section of the press. So much hoodwinked that Buhari's explanation had never been heard!This is what Buhari said about this: "This is a typical case of the press believing what they want to believe. I hope it is not a reflection of the Nigerian society. I hope one day you will find the time to interview the Vice President on this. I understand he was the Customs officer in charge of the Murtala Mohammed airport, perhaps he knows more about it than myself. I have explained this so many times but the press write what they want to write and not what is factual." Going down the memory lane, he added: "I recall the day in question. We were playing squash with my ADC when his father, the late Emir was returning to the country. He was a well-respected person. I prompted Jokolo to go and receive him even when he had no intention of doing so. By some coincidence his father was returning with my late chief of protocol who was an ambassador in Libya. He returned with his three wives and about 16 children. Everything about him including the handbag of his wives was counted as a suitcase. I explained this myself but nobody believed me." The Vice-President referred to is Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the man that is now desperately fighting for PDP nomination. Some months ago when he Alhaji Atiku Abubakar gave inkling into his interest in the nation's presidency, anxious journalists wanted to know from him how he would manage the formidable competition from IBB. He smiled and calmly told them, "You people do not know that my friendship with General Babangida had been for at least ten years before i knew the late General Shehu Musa-Yar'adua." As an undergraduate, I did a little bit of mathematical induction. Without doubt, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was very friendly with General IBB (the serving Chief of Army staff) at the time of this 53-suitcase saga. We cannot infer anything yet, it is necessary to delve a little into IBB's subterfuge and fifth-columnist-posturing during the Buhari regime. www.nairaland.com/attachments/754009_Gen__Buhari_jpg3932850d15a62856c902dd8cc516cff9 During the infamous Nigerian Medical Association (NMA)-induced doctors' strike of 1984/85, Dr Fashakin (a former NMA President in Ife zone) had in an internet discourse, graciously acknowledged the 'logistics' support extended to the ‘fleeing’ NMA executive members by the same Gen. IBB. Col. Halilu Akilu (as Director military Intelligence) was reporting to Gen IBB as the Chief of Army staff. For inexplicable reason (except for sheer idiocy), Akilu ordered soldiers to invade the 2-park-lane-Apapa residence of the late Sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo. Sometime ago, General Buhari was cornered and asked specifically about this incident. He said, "I did not order anybody to do this. It was the handiwork of the fifth columnist in our midst." The Newsprints ordered by Concord Press (owned by Chief MKO Abiola) were seized by the Buhari regime because of infraction of the subsisting importation regulation. On the day (27th August, 1985) the Buhari regime was toppled, an airplane owned by Concord airline ferried General IBB from Minna to Lagos to assume leadership of the Nation. Did that suggest a friendship that facilitated the successful removal of the regime? Was there a possibility of an alliance by General IBB and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to embarrass the Buhari regime? I strongly believe so! I therefore make bold to declare that the 53-suitcase issue was a hoax! You are at liberty to hold on to your impression. www.nairaland.com/attachments/822098_Gen_Buhari_jpg680f0e3cee55a5a2432551406739fb8e Buhari may have his foibles (as all humans do) but what his detractors cannot take away from him is his personal discipline with no avaricious desire for unjust gain. This means he is a man who has succeeded in putting his own self into some form of self -abnegation. Such is the man that can usher in a fresh air from the fouled political atmosphere within the polity. I challenge anyone to point to any assassination or assassination attempt (with the imprimatur of the state) during the Buhari regime. But what happened after his removal? All the succeeding regimes have been guilty of clandestinely eliminating voices of dissent within the polity. Though Gen IBB came smiling at everyone, including the Press; but before 15 months of his reign, a notable journalist had already been ‘parcel-bombed’! We virtually lost count of unresolved state-organized murders during the infamous civilian regime of Baba Iyabo the imperial president. The explanation for the unresolved assassination Chief Bola Ige SAN, the regime's minister of Justice still leaves much to be desired! This spate of murders to settle political scores has, unwittingly or wittingly, been replicated by the state governors. It is a rarity to find a state governor without murderous squads roaming freely for the next assignment to satisfy their sponsors. It is against this backdrop that Nigerians, I mean concerned Nigerians believe that the next leadership is critical in moving the nation to the next level. It is clearly important that we can no longer operate the culture of government by settlement whereby less than 600 individuals collectively consume 25% of the nation's budget; according to the recent startling statistics by the CBN governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi. Buhari had said he intends to extend the work-hours of Nigerians to 24-7; which means the people should be free to move about at whatever time of the day as they choose. Who is able to do this? It is not what someone reads to us from a speech prepared by a consultant; but from someone whose antecedents bespeak of refusal to pander to the antics of the Breton Woods' institutions to further impoverish our people. www.nairaland.com/attachments/908677_buhari_pic_gif0b92a71a0ffa3f1da9713778c0f7a2f0 It was a clear attestation of his Spartan lifestyle that the Abacha military regime entrusted the management of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) under his watch. There is no gain saying that PTF literally became the project arm of the government: Drugs supply to hospitals (especially Universities’ medical centers), road projects to hitherto unexplored rural areas clearly attest to his scrupulous assiduity. What is the state of the republic as we speak? The parlous state of the economy is aptly captured in the fact that for the past eight months, the foreign reserves have been depleted by $8Billion, with the inflation rate as high as 14% and still rising. More worrisome is the depletion of the excess crude account from $22Billion to $470million with no corresponding economy-impacting capital projects to justify the expenditure. Newton's second law of Motion states that: "Everybody continues in a state of rest or uniform motion unless compelled by an external force." If there is no meaningful intervention from a confirmed patriot, our democracy (or demonstration of craze, apology to Fela Anikulapo-Kuti) is doomed for failure. It is for these reasons and many more that General Muhammadu Buhari has taken up the gauntlet (through the support of Nigerians across the geo-political divide) to save the polity just one more time. The espousal of the new Nigeria would be dependent on the choice we make in April 2011. The Executive Presidents we have had in the last twelve years have not emerged from their visionary desire for the office but as a result of overbearing superimposition by entrenched interests. That would largely account for the rudderless leadership that had, unfortunately, been foisted on us. On the contrary, Muhammadu Buhari, with his antecedents of transparent and impactful governance, has with again shown uncanny indefatigability in offering himself for the needed rescue operation on the nation. Will this third attempt be the defining moment for the Nigerian nation? We stand at the threshold of history as true greatness beckons! God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. www.nairaland.com/attachments/725348_buhari_parade_jpgcf420c430ac5cdb9a5c0fadf1e0fb509 Engr. Rotimi Fashakin, 28, Oguntona Crescent, Gbagada, Lagos. Email: rotfash@yahoo.com http://www.thenigerianvoice.com/nvnews/40741/1/muhammadu-buhari-the-untiring-persona-at-68.html |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by CROWE: 4:53pm On Feb 16, 2013 |
You go on, make that paper. |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 4:59pm On Feb 16, 2013 |
what do you mean? |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by DanIlon(m): 8:51pm On Feb 16, 2013 |
ezeagu: Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year. Buhari did not win. It has been a year.due to PDP rigged dt don't allow him to elect ahead of fear |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 5:50am On Feb 18, 2013 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by BashirAhmad1(m): 10:21am On Feb 18, 2013 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 5:53am On Feb 25, 2013 |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 6:07am On Feb 25, 2013 |
How Buhari Performed as chairman of Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xhN5fljkIw |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 9:07am On Feb 25, 2013 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 10:25am On Apr 03, 2013 |
GenBuhari: |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 1:28pm On Apr 08, 2013 |
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| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 10:36am On May 02, 2013 |
GenBuhari: |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 4:37am On May 04, 2013 |
In London 2007 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Am7GiZtJLw Video starts out by Buhari refuting the unsubstantiated allegations that he had once told muslims not to vote for christians. Explaining that he said that people should vote for they can trust. |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 1:36am On May 09, 2013 |
[size=18pt]Buhari Bares It All In New Interview (part1)[/size] Posted by: Information Nigeria http://www.informationng.com/2012/12/i-have-not-forgiven-obasanjo-buhari-bares-it-all-in-new-interview.html Ever since the Supreme Court ruled on the 2011 presidential election, former Head of State and candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), General Muhammadu Buhari, has always refused to grant an elaborate interview on his experiences and feelings. However, on the auspicious occasion of his 70th birthday, Buhari has finally spoken. In this exclusive interview, he speaks about his growing up days, experiences in the Army, his emergence as head of state when he never participated in any coup, the 1966 coup and the counter-coup, and on many things more. Excerpts: What kind of childhood did you have? - Well, from my father’s side, we are Fulanis. You know the Fulanis are really divided into two. There are nomads, the ones that if you drive from Maiduguri and many parts of the North you will find. They are even in parts of Delta now. And there are those who settled. They are cousins and the same people actually. From my mother’s side and on her father’s side, we are Kanuris from Kukawa. Where’s Kukawa? - Kukawa is in Borno State. We are Kanuris. On her mother’s side, we are Hausas. So, you can see I am Hausa, Fulani, Kanuri combined[laughs]. I am the 23rd child of my father. Twenty-third and the 13th on my mother side. There are only two of us remaining now; my sister and I. I went to school, primary school, in Daura and Kaduna, also a primary school, in Kachia. I also attended Kaduna Provincial Secondary School, now Government College. I didn’t work for a day. I joined the military in 1962. You mean as a boy soldier? - No, after school certificate. There was an officer cadet school from here in Kaduna, called Nigeria Military Training College then. In April 1962, I went to the United Kingdom (UK), Mons Officers Cadet School. You mean the famous Mons Officers? - Yes. And when I was commissioned, I came back and I was posted to 2nd Infantry Battalion in Abeokuta. That was my first posting. The battalion was in the Democratic Republic of Congo. I went there. When I came back from there, I was first in Lagos, as Transport Officer. That was where I was till the January coup. I was posted back to my battalion and we were posted to Kaduna here. And then, there was a counter coup, civil war, coup and counter-coup. We participated. I too was overthrown and detained for more than three years. And having had that major political setback when I was made a head of state and then, ended up in detention, I went out and eventually, I decided to join party politics, participated three times and lost as presidential candidate and I am still in and fighting. You have never given up? - Even though I said at some stage that I wouldn’t present myself for candidature again, I said I remain in party politics as long as I have breath in me. Your Excellency, why did you join the Army? - The interest was built while I was in secondary school. The emirs of Katsina, from Dikko, were known to be interested in the military. They always have members of the military or police in their family right from World War 11. One of the emirs of Kaduna-Dikko died in Burma. And of course, everybody in the country knows General Hassan, the son of the Emir of Katsina. He was grandson of Emir Dukko. So, when General Hassan was in Sandhurst, we were in secondary school in Kaduna. His father, the Emir of Katsina, Usman Nagogo, used to ask him to go and talk to the senior students who were in form four to six, to get them interested in the military. And we were told that he deliberately wanted a military cadet unit in Kaduna Secondary School. Then, it was limited to Federal Government Colleges or Government Colleges and we had a military cadet unit, which I joined. That was the transition? - That was where the interest started. Did your parents object to it? - No. Well, I didn’t know my father really. Oh! How old were you when he died? - I think I was about three, four years? I couldn’t remember his face. The only thing I could recall about my father was the horse because it threw me down. We were on the horse with one of my half brothers going to water it and then, it tripped and I fell. It stepped on me. So, that is the only impression I have of him. That is the only thing I could recall. What of your mother? - Oh! my mother died in 1988 when I was in detention. Ok, I remember then the controversy of allowing you to go and see her buried. Did they eventually allow you? - No. Then it was quite an issue… - Yeah, it became an issue; so I was immediately released after she was buried. You didn’t see her buried? - No. It was after you were released you then went to her grave and all that? - Exactly! What kind of childhood did you then have? - Well, you know communities then were living communal life. Clearly, I could recall I reared cattle. We had cattle; we had sheep and then, there was good neighbourhood. Not many children had the opportunity to go to school, but I went to school. I left home at the age of 10 or 11 and went to school, like I said. And I was in the boarding school for nine years. In primary school and secondary school, I was in the boarding house and from there, I went straight into the Army. So, you have always been on your own? - In those days, there were not many schools and the teachers then were professionals. They were working teachers and were committed. And teachers then treated the children as if they were their own students. You were made to work and if you don’t, they never spared the cane really. So, I was lucky to be in the boarding school for my impressionable years, nine years. I was very lucky. Did you play any pranks as a young person? - Oh, certainly! What where the things you did? - [laughs] I wouldn’t like to mention them. Tell us some of them… - We used to raid the emir’s orchard for mangoes mainly. Of course, unfortunately we were caught and punished. When people talk of Buhari today, they are looking at a disciplined man. Was it the boarding house that put you through that or the military? Was the boarding house part of where you got your Spartan, disciplined life? - Both did. As I told you, the teachers then treated their students as if they were their own children. So, we got the best of attention from teachers. And as I told you, they never spared the cane. You were meant to do your homework; you were meant to do the sports and clean up the environment, the compound and the area of the school and so on. And from that type of life, I moved into the military, the military of that time. Would you say going into the military was the best thing that ever happened to you? - I think so, because from primary to secondary school and in the military, it will continue, both the academic and the physical one. I think it was so tough, but then, once it was inbuilt, it has to be sustained because you don’t contemplate failure. You just succeed? Does it mean failure was not an option? - No. It was not. Was it also the Fulani training of perseverance? Because when you have reared cattle, for those who have been doing it, they said it toughens you… - It did. The sun is there, the rain and you are there with your cattle… - The period was remarkable, in the sense that those who are brought up in the city have limited space. If you are in a confined school, you learn from the school and what you see immediately. But the nomad life exposes you to nature. You will never learn enough of plants, of trees, of insects and of animals. Everyday you are learning something. You have seen them and everyday you are learning. You will never know all of them. So, it is so vast that it takes a lot of whatever you can think of. And then, the difference again in the environment. In the Savannah, in the Sahel, after harvest, you can always see as high as your eyes can go. And then, at night when there is moon, it is fantastic. So, I enjoyed those days and they made a lasting impression in me. What are the remarkable things you can think of during your military trainings? - Initially, from here in Kaduna, at the end of your training, the height of the field exercise was then conducted in two places. Here in southern Kaduna and somewhere in Kachia area. There was a thick belt in that forest. You go for field firing and so on. And then you go to Jos for map reading and endurance. That was why mathematics at that level, the secondary school level, geometry and algebra, were absolutely necessary. It had always been, because to be a competent officer, you may be deployed to be in charge of artillery; physics, where you help find your position. Wherever you are from, you work it on the ground in degrees and so on. You have to do some mathematics. We were in Jos. Again, I was made a leader of a small unit. We were given a map, a compass and you dare not cheat. If you are found out, you are taken 10 miles back. So, you have to go across the country. You find your way from the map; you go to certain points and on those points, mostly hills, you climb them and you will get a box. The weather there is cold. You put your own coat and you cover it over the hills and at the end of the exercise, part of your scorecards, are those marks you won or you lost. We arrived with one compass, which led us to a certain bushy hill. In Jos? - Yes, in Jos. And it was night, dark and it was raining lightly and definitely, our compass led us to that hill, which means there was a point there. And there were five of us: myself, one Sierra Leonean or Ghanaian, one from Sokoto, and one other. I think the other person is Katsina Alu, the former Chief Justice. You mean he was in the military? - He was. He did the training but he was never commissioned. He went to university and did Law. I went up to the hill. I picked the box. I copied the code, and I said if I were forced to join the Army, I would have left the following day because that place, a viper or a snake or something or hyena or lion could have finished me. But I said if I run away the following day, people would say well we knew you couldn’t make it, we knew you would be lazy. But because I voluntarily joined the Army, I said I have to be there. That is one point. The second one was when I was in training in the UK. I came there and we were drilled so much and at night again, we were on an exercise. We were putting our formation. In anyway position was created, and they fired at us. We went down automatically that day and by the time the commander asked us to move, I fell asleep. It must be few seconds, not up to a minute. That was how exhausted I was. Was it really the cold or what? - It was cold. It was 1962. It was cold and it was rainy again just like in Plateau. Just between the time we went down and to move and climb the mountain, I fell asleep. So, those two moments, I would never forget them. Who were your classmates in the military and in the officers’ training in the UK? - Well, the late Gen. Yar’Adua. I was together with him throughout the nine years primary, secondary school and in the military. So, you have always been colleagues? - We were together from childhood. |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 1:55am On May 09, 2013 |
[size=18pt]Buhari Bares It All In New Interview (part2)[/size] Ok, that is interesting. Who else? - Well, not the ones that are here. In the military, most of them did not reach the position I reached; myself, and Yar’Adua. They couldn’t make it. Why did you choose the infantry and not the other arms? What was the attraction? - Maybe it was the training of the cadet unit in secondary school. I found the infantry much more challenging and when we were doing the training, the Federal Government decided that we were going to have the Air Force. So, I was invited. A team came from the Ministry of Defence to interview cadets that wanted to be fighter pilots in the Air Force. I was the first to be called in our group. I appeared before them and they told me that those who could pass the interview would be recommended to go to the Air Force training either in the UK, some went to Ethiopia or United States or Germany. So, they asked me whether I wanted to be a fighter pilot and I said no. They asked why, and I said I wasn’t interested. We were given three choices. Number one, maybe you went to infantry; number two, you went to reconnaissance then before they became armour and later, maybe artillery. So, all my three choices, I could recall vividly, I put infantry, infantry. So, they said why? I said because I liked infantry. And they asked if I wouldn’t like to be a fighter pilot. I said no, I didn’t want to join them. They said why. I said I hadn’t done physics. Normally, I did some mathematics but to be a fighter pilot, you must do some physics. They said no, that it was no problem, that I could have an additional one academic year. So, since I had some mathematics background, it was just one year purely to do physics and I would reach the grade required to be a pilot. I said no, I didn’t want it. They again asked why. I told them I chose infantry. The reason is: when I am fighting and I was shot at, if I was not hit, I can go down, turn back and take off by foot. They laughed and sent me out. So, I remained infantry officer. Where were you during the coups and counter-coups? And what rank were you in the military then? - I was in Lagos, in the barracks, as transport officer. I was only a second lieutenant. That was during the January 15, 1966 coup? - Yes, January 15, 1966. The coup met you in Lagos? - Yes. I think that was my saddest day in the military because I happened to know some of the senior officers that were killed. In the transport company, after the 2nd Battalion and we came back, I was posted to Lagos to be a transport officer and in my platoon, we had staff cars and Landrovers. So, I knew the Army officers, from Ironsi, Maimalari, because I detailed vehicles for them every working day. So, I knew senior officers. So, you were in contact with them? - I was in contact with them somehow because I was in charge of transportation. Where were you that night of January 15 coup? - I was in Lagos. Can you recall the circumstance, how you got to know? - The way I got to know was, my routine then was as early as about six in the morning, I used to drive to the garage to make sure that all vehicles for officers, from the General Officer Commanding (GOC), who was then General Ironsi, were roadworthy and the drivers would drive off. And then, I would go back to the Officers Mess in Yaba, where I would wash, have my breakfast and come back to the office. And around the railway crossing in Yaba, coming out from the barracks, we saw a wounded soldier. I stopped because I was in a Landrover. I picked him and asked what happened. He said he was in the late Maimalari’s house and they were having a party the previous night and the place was attacked. So, I took the soldier to the military hospital in Yaba and I asked after the commander. Maimalari, I think, was commander of 2 Brigade in Apapa. He was the 2 Brigade Commander. They said he was shot and killed. Then, you didn’t know it was a coup? - Well, that became a coup. That was the time I really learnt it was a coup. |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 2:05am On May 09, 2013 |
[size=18pt]Buhari Bares It All In New Interview (part3)[/size] And then there was a counter-coup of July? - Yes, July. Where were you at this time also? - I was in Lagos again. I was still in Lagos then at Apapa at 2 Brigade Transport Company. And then, there was ethnic colouration and all that. And at a point, they asked some of you to go back to the North. Am I correct? - Yes, because I was posted back then to the battalion. That was in Abeokuta. It was first to Ikeja Cantonment, but after the counter-coup, we were taken to Lagos by train, the whole battalion. Did you play any role in the counter-coup? - No! Not that I will tell you. You know at 70, you are reminiscing. You are saying it the way it is, you don’t give a damn anymore… - Well, there was a coup. That is all I can tell you. I was a unit commander and certainly, there was a breakdown of law and order. So, I was posted to a combatant unit, although 2 Brigade Transport Company was a combatant unit. You know there were administrative and combatant units and the service unit, like health, education. Even transport, there are administrative ones, but there are combatant ones also. The question I asked was, did you play any specific role? - No. I was too junior to play any specific role. I was just a lieutenant then. In 1966, January, I was a Second Lieutenant, but I was promoted, I think, around April, May, or June to Lieutenant. And what were your impressions of that period? - You see, senior military officers had been killed and politicians, like Sardauna, Akintola, Okotie Eboh. They were killed. And then in the military, Maimalari, Yakubu Pam, Legima, Shodeinde, and Ademolegun; so really, it had a tribal tinge. The first one? - Yes. And then, there was a counter. One mistake gave birth to another one? - Certainly, certainly. And then long years of military came? - Oh yes. From 1967-75, it was Gowon. At that point in time, where were you? - When Gowon came into power, I wonder whether I would recall where I was. It was July 1967 that Gowon came in. That was when I was in Lagos. I was again in Lagos, then in the transport company. Then he took over? - Yeah, Gowon took over or Gowon was installed. Well, more like you… - [laughs] Yes. And then in 1967? - Civil war. So, you have to give me that part because there are some books I have read, that featured your name. So, what were your experiences during the civil war? - Well, I told you that we were parked into the rail to Kaduna from Ikeja, 2nd Infantry Battalion and when states were created by General Gowon, police action was ordered; we were moved to the border in the East. We were not in Nsukka, but in Ogoja. We started from Ogoja. And you took active part? - Yeah. Well, I was a junior officer. Who was your GOC [General Officer Commanding] then? - My GOC was the late General Shuwa. How did you feel during that period of the civil war? Did you think that when the first coup started, that civil war would just come? - No. I never felt so and I never hoped for it. Literally, you are trained to fight a war but you are not trained to fight a war within your own country. We would rather have enemies from outside your country to defend your country, but not to fight among yourselves. Some of those officers you were fighting were your comrades… - They were. Some of them were even my coursemates. We were facing each other, like when we were in Awka sector. The person facing me was called Bob Akonobi. We were mates here. Robert Akonobi? Who later became a governor? - Yes. He was my coursemate here in Kaduna. And there you were… - Facing each other. It was really crazy. It was unfortunate, but it is part of our national development. |
| Re: Buhari - Nigeria's Head of State 1983-1985 by Nobody: 2:11am On May 09, 2013 |
[size=18pt]Buhari Bares It All In New Interview (part4)[/size] And the way we are going, you think it is a possibility again? - I don’t think so. No, I don’t think so. After Gowon, Murtala came. - Yes. By the time you were no longer a small officer… - No. I was just, I think, a colonel? Was it a lieutenant colonel or major? I think I was a lieutenant colonel. But during the Obasanjo administration, you had become a minister, as it were. - No. I first became a governor when Murtala came, in North-East. This same North East that is giving problem now. - Yes. I was there and there were six states then: Yobe, Borno, Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa and Taraba. And they were all under your control or command? - North East went up to Chad; anyway, they are on the same latitude with Lagos. The bottom before you start going on the Plateau, Mambilla Plateau, if you look here on the map, the same latitude was in Lagos and then, up to Chad. That was the extent of the whole North East. Now, some of them can’t govern even one state… - They are now six states. I know, but you governed six states and now, some of them have problems with one state… - Yes. What were the challenges you faced governing the North East as a military governor? - Actually, at that time, because of competent civil service… I was a military man but once you get to the rank of a lieutenant-colonel, after major, you are being taught some management courses. It needs a few weeks for somebody who has gone through the military management training, you have junior staff college, senior staff college; by that time, you will have enough experience for most administrative jobs because you must have had enough of the combat ones. I think I didn’t have much problem. And then, the competent civil servants. Civil servants then were very professional. And not political as we have them now? - No. They were really professionals and they can disagree with you on record, on issues. They were not afraid to make recommendations to the military governor or administrator? - No, they were never. People like the late Liman Ciroma, Waziri Fika, who was eventually Secretary to the Government of Babangida. And the late Abubakar Umar, who was Secretary to the Government of Bauchi State; and the late Moguno. They were real professionals, committed technocrats. So, you didn’t really have much challenges? - No, not much challenges. There was no insecurity then, like we have in the North East today? - No, the police then, with their Criminal Investigation Department (CID), were very, very competent. They interacted closely with the people. So, criminals in the locality were easily identified and put under severe surveillance. And really, there was relative peace in the country. What were your major achievements in the North East as governor? - I think the way the state was divided into three; if you remember, it became Borno, Bauchi and Gongola. So, the way we divided the assets, including the civil service and so on, I think it was one of our achievements because it was so peaceful then. We had a committee on civil service. And eventually you became minister of petroleum under Obasanjo? - Yes. That was the only ministry you held under Obasanjo? - Yes. During your time as petroleum minister, what were you doing differently that they are not doing now that has made the sector totally rotten? - Well, I was lucky again. When I was made a minister, I met an experienced man, a person of great personal integrity, the late Sunday Awoniyi. He was the permanent secretary then before the Supreme Military Council approved the merger of the Nigerian National Oil Corporation (NNOC) and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and made Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Sunday Awoniyi was then the permanent secretary of the ministry. That was when I was sworn in eventually, I think in 1977, it became NNPC when the ministry and the NNOC were merged. He retired from the civil service. Another competent technocrat, Morinho, he became the Director of Petroleum Resources and he had a very competent team of Nigerian engineers, petroleum engineers and chemical engineers. And as minister of petroleum, I signed the contract for Warri Refinery, for Kaduna Refinery, for more than 20 depots all over the country, for laying of pipelines, more than 3200 kilometers and I couldn’t recall Nigeria borrowing a kobo for those projects. And then, by the time I became head of state, because I went to War College in the United States before the military handed over to the Second Republic and came back in 1980 and then, there was coup at the end of 1983. And that time, you can verify from Professor Tam David-West who was Minister of Petroleum Resources. We were exporting 100,000 barrels per day of refined products. Exporting from the country? - Yes, refined one. Refined one, not the raw one they are taking to import? - No. 100, 000 barrels? - Yes. Because we had four refineries then. They have all collapsed… - Well, that is the efficiency of the subsequent governments! |
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