anyone who can't see this was a political stunt is a slowpoke.

gej isn't even a member of redeemed.

Written by Sulaimon Olanrewaju and Adekunle Tayo Monday, 20 December 2010

FORMER Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, on Sunday, said that governors who endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan were merely deceiving him, because the same governors had also assured him of their support.

Abubakar, a presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said though the governors had the right to support whoever they chose, but lacked the power to promise any aspirant the votes of delegates.

Alhaji Abubakar made this statement in Lagos, during a meeting with media executives.

According to him, “governors have no right to dictate to delegates. To do so is to intimidate the delegates and that is undemocratic.”

He stated further that: “I talk to the delegates one on one, he (Jonathan) believes in using the governors. At the end, we shall see which strategy is better. I think he now understands better and is going now to meet the delegates and giving them money.”

He also promised to tackle electricity problem to improve employment generation, adding that if elected president, he would work towards using earnings from crude oil for infrastructure development and Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) for recurrent expenditure.

Meanwhile, Alhaji Abubakar has raised concerns over the budget 2011 presented by President Jonathan, saying, for instance, that the percentage of the budget dedicated to capital expenditure will not allow the country to meet the accelerated infrastructure upgrade expected in Vision 20:2020.

“With an investment of a paltry 23.8% of the budget over the medium term, poverty will deepen and this will result in economic stagnation,” declared Abubakar in his concerns over the budget made available to newsmen on Sunday.

He argued that a country that seeks double digit growth rate must pump more resources into capital investment, warning that the implication was that improvements in infrastructure promised under the 7-point agenda, Vision 20:2020 and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) may not materialise.

Atiku said the 2011 budget was against the backdrop of poor imple-mentation of 2010 capital budget, adding that less than N374.875 billion out of a budget of N1.764 trillion had been utilised, translating into 21.25 per cent of total capital expenditure for 2010.

The PDP presidential aspirant also faulted the interest rate, saying that the budget contained no pro-jection on interest rates or strategies to reduce the spread between lending and deposit rates for the medium term.

“It is either the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) compels banks to reduce the lending rate or increase the deposit rate.

“The spread between lending and deposit rates should not exceed four points, to wit, if the deposit rate is five per cent per annum, banks should not be allowed to charge more than nine per cent per annum on lending,” he said.

The presidential aspirant said “to boost the value of the naira against international currencies may require the direct allocation of foreign exchange earned from oil to the three tiers of government, rather than monetising it.”

He equally attributed the disconnection between monetary policy and market interest rates to the high cost of funds and of doing business in Nigeria.

Atiku canvassed the need for the CBN to take steps to encourage lending to the private sector, so that it could assume its role as the engine of growth.

He urged the National Assembly to ensure that the budget “is redirected to reflect the wisehs and aspirations of majority of Nigerians for pro-poor people centred growth, which creates wealth and adds value to the value chain.”

http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/front-page-news/14982-2011-govs-only-deceiving-jonathan-atiku-picks-holes-in-2011-budget

AND

http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2010/12/20/atiku-jonathan-bribing-delegates/

do you really believe that it is a coincidence that with only a month left to go before the primaries GEJ turns up at the country's largest church live on television? as usual a man who is being defeated left, right and centre has decided to turn to God for salvation. the funny thing is that jona isn't even a member of the church so what was he doing there if not seeking publicity and the playing the christain card?

please bear in mind that ALL the other presidential hopefuls have been to see adeboye but they had the common sense to do it in private, as it is dangerous to mix politics and religion in a country as diverse and segregated as nigeria.

this is a bad move for jonathan as he has just confirmed the fears of a lot of people in this country, but i am not surprised as it's just one in a long list of blunders

chyz:

[size=18pt]2011: S’West PDP delegates endorse Jonathan[/size]

By Olalekan Adetayo, Ibadan

Monday, 20 Dec 2010
 



Barely 24 hours after about 844 Peoples Democratic Party national delegates in the North-West endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for the party’s presidential ticket, their counterparts from the South-West have also declared their unalloyed support for the President.

The 580 delegates drawn from Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states took the decision at a meeting with the President at the Mapo Hall in Ibadan, Oyo State capital on Sunday.

A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting and signed by the South-West Coordinator of the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign Committee, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, said, “All the delegates of the party at the meeting unanimously, willingly and unequivocally resolved to support and vote en-bloc for President Jonathan and Vice-President Namadi Sambo at the primaries of the party slated for January 13, 2011.”

Earlier, Jonathan had described the South-West as a ‘very crucial’ zone in the realisation of his quest for the party’s presidential ticket. He also urged leaders of the party in the zone to work hard to ensure victory for the party in the governorship election in Lagos State. He admitted that winning Lagos would be a difficult task and advised the leaders of the party in the zone to take the assignment seriously.

Jonathan also expressed regrets on the loss of Ondo, Ekiti and Osun states to opposition parties at the Court of Appeal but stated that efforts were being made to reverse the situation.

He said, “We appreciate the challenges the court judgments imposed on the people of the region and we have held several meetings to address the issue. We are touched by the loss of these states and we are committed. We will work harder to ensure that the states are recovered from the rival parties at the next election.”

Daniel, in his opening remarks, assured the President that the zone would not compromise in delivering the votes of its delegates at the party’s presidential primaries. According to Daniel, Oyo State has 153 delegates, while Ogun, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti and Lagos have 108, 123, 80, 60 and 37 respectively.

Earlier, the host governor, Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, asked the party’s chieftains not to be weighed down by the political developments in the three South-West states. At the meeting, the motion for the South-West delegates to endorse the President was moved by the senator representing Ife/Ijesa District, Iyiola Omisore, and seconded by the Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Mr. Moroof Atilola.

All chieftains of the party who have been engaged in a running battle with Alao-Akala did not attend the parley. They include the Senate Leader, Teslim Folarin; Senator Lekan Balogun, Elder Wole Oyelese, Alhaji Yekini Adeojo, Senator Rashidi Ladoja and Ayo Adeseun.

The President had before the meeting paid a courtesy visit to the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana, Odugade I, where he sought royal blessings for his ambition.


http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20101220312465

ah yes, a communiqué signed by the South-West Coordinator of the Goodluck/Sambo Campaign. it MUST be true then, i mean why would he lie?

the propaganda that passes for journalism in this country is just insane. the article starts off by claiming all 844 delegates from the north west zone are going to vote for GEJ   wowsers. who believes this stuff? oh wait, you guys do!!

GEJ the christian candidate.

There go the Northern votes!

^^^

Very true. If you read the articles on the NEC meetings in The Punch, Vanguard and This Day you will see that they are almost identical (word for word). The papers were given a leaked version of events from the president's office in an attempt to put a positive spin on the event and the stupid journalist just published the press realise verbatim.

This press in this country is useless; the stories are literally not worth the paper they are printed on - it's all propaganda.

so this is the new fresh air politics we've all been waiting for? because from where i'm sitting it just seems like more of the same

Beaf:

No, its just the end game. Some major muscle was flexed in the faces of the governors to show that there are several easy alternatives for the man with a full hand of cards. They will line up firmly behind GEJ before the week is out, no more governors forum and other anti-democratic stuff.

beaf, i beg, was this major muscle flexing before or after all the tears??

[size=20pt]Order of primaries : How governors forced Jonathan to back down [/size]



Yesterday’s meeting of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party’s [PDP] National Executive Committee [NEC] was delayed for more than 7 hours because of a tense and acrimonious closed-door meeting at which President Goodluck Jonathan and party national chairman Dr. Okesileize Nwodo alternately begged, cajoled and threatened the party’s state governors to accept presidential before gubernatorial primaries, Daily Trust learnt from sources inside the meeting last night. When all pleas fell on deaf ears, Jonathan caved in to the governors’ demand in return for what a source said was “a hollow statement endorsing his presidential aspiration.”


It all began when 21 PDP governors arrived at Wadata Plaza, venue of the scheduled meeting, earlier than the 11am time of the meeting and they went straight to Dr. Nwodo’s office. The governors, led by their chairman Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki of Kwara State, said they had come to tell Nwodo that they will not accept a reversal of the order of primaries to place the presidential before the gubernatorial primaries, and that they would ensure the proposal’s defeat at the NEC meeting. They urged Nwodo to tell President Jonathan, who was behind the move, to drop it “in order not to suffer a humiliation at the NEC meeting.”



When the governors’ meeting with Nwodo dragged on, party national secretary Dr. Abubakar Kawu Baraje issued a statement rescheduling the NEC meeting to 3pm. The hot exchange in Nwodo’s office then continued and 2 hours later, Vice President Mohamed Namadi Sambo arrived and joined the meeting. He pleaded with the governors to respect the president’s wishes and allow the primary election order to be reversed, but the governors resolutely stood their ground.

At 4.47pm, President Jonathan also arrived and joined the meeting. Sources told Daily Trust that the meeting became very hot at that point, with President Jonathan close to tears as he begged the PDP governors not to allow his main challenger, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, to humiliate him in the PDP primaries. He said Atiku had severally promised to defeat him in the primaries and he accused the governors of abetting it with their intransigence.

President Jonathan then referred to Atiku’s comment of the previous day, in which he said “those who make peaceful change impossible make violent change inevitable.” He described the statement as treasonable, and he said if Atiku ever makes such a statement again, he would order his arrest “no matter what will happen.”

When the PDP governors still said they would not back down from their stance, former Board of Trustees chairman Chief Tony Anenih stood up and suggested a compromise. He urged the president to allow the governors to have their way with the order of primaries. In return, Anenih said the governors should make a public declaration of support for Jonathan’s aspiration.

This suggestion again divided the governors, some of whom said it was okay, but several others said there was no need for it, since most of them had already declared support for Jonathan at his eagle Square declaration and also when his campaign team visited their states. However, a majority of the governors said a statement should be issued, describing it as “insignificant” because of previous endorsements. At that point, several Northern governors said they could only sign the statement if it committed Jonathan to serve a single term from 2011 to 2015.

At 6:15 p.m, while the imbroglio was going on, Minister of Women Affairs Mrs. Josephine Anenih, who along with other NEC members had been waiting for 7 hours, got up and began singing a song calling for equality, development and peace. She said, “You will agree with me that if women are up there [in the meeting], they will have solved this problem. Women are for peace!”

After the Anenih compromise was worked out, the NEC meeting finally began at 6.24pm. the NEC quickly ratified the old order of primaries and provided that House of Assembly, National Assembly, governorship and then presidential primaries to hold on January 3, 5, 9 and 13 respectively.

Soon after the NEC meeting ended, twenty governors kept their own side of the bargain and issued a statement endorsing Jonathan’s ambition. Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State read the statement, but the governors’ chairman Governor Bukola Saraki bluntly refused to sign, saying he could not endorse Jonathan because he was part of the Northern consensus arrangement.

The governors that backed Jonathan were those of Benue, Niger, Katsina, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Gombe, Rivers, Adamawa, Bayelsa, Plateau, Nasarawa, Bauchi, Kaduna, Kebbi, Kogi, Zamfara, Taraba, Ogun, Imo and Oyo States.

The communiqué read by Shema and signed by the 20 governors stated that they were supporting Jonathan ‘for a period of four years only’.

The communiqué titled ‘Resolution of PDP Governors’ said, “ At the emergency meeting of PDP Governors held Thursday 16th Day of December, 2010 and having deliberated extensively on democratic practices the world over observed as follows:

“democratic systems all over the world recognize the principle of incumbency and continuity.

“entrenched democratic culture persistent in presidential system and our constitution entitles our President to run for a second term which the PDP Governors support.

“The Governors also recognize the Yar’adua/Jonathan ticket and therefore hereby support and endorse President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GCFR) to contest the 2011 election as the PDP Presidential candidate for a period of four years only.”

Swiftly reacting to the governors’ statement, Atiku Abubakar’s campaign office said the governors have the right endorse any aspirant but stated that delegates’ right to vote should not be trampled upon.

The statement said, “The so-called Governors’ endorsement is of no significance so long as they do not take away the right of delegates to vote. We are in a democracy. Governors have a right to make a democratic choice and so do the delegates. Let there be no intimidation of delegates”

Interesting to note that the so called "endorsement" came after the NEC agreed on the order of the primaries.

After the Governors collect their ticket how many will continue with their so called support of gej/sambo? I'm guessing not many!

marcdunu:

The most laughable thing is that the endorsing Governors include:

Niger
Zamfara
Bauchi
Kebbi
Taraba
Kogi
Katsina
Imo

If Jonathan really thinks he will get more delegates in any of these States than Atiku then all of Jonathan's aides and loyalists are simply lying to him.

i'm actually under the impression that gej doesn't particularly want the job. i think he's been bullied into this position by obj. he seems like a simple man whose had the misfortune of being caught in a fire storm and is now being completely overwhelmed by the situation; though i guess he wont have long to wait until he gets to go back home.

i don't speak pigeon but on this occasion even I DEY LAUGH O

[size=20pt]PDP Crisis May Deepen, As 20 governors "Endorse" Jonathan[/size]

By SaharaReporters, New York

The schism in Peoples Democratic Party may further deepen on Thursday as 20 of the party's 28 governors claimed they were backing President Goodluck Jonathan for the party's presidential ticket. Two of the governors were represented by their deputies.

At the end of meeting attended by President Goodluck Jonathan, the PDP governors and the leadership of the PDP, the governors issued a statement, saying they would support Jonathan to seek one more term of office.

[b]But moments after the statement was made public, some of the governors spoke to SaharaReporters saying their public posturing on the matter should be discountenanced.

"Forget it. It is was a sham," one of the governors, who spoke to us said. "He (Jonathan) desperately wants us to endorse him and we have acted it out the way he wanted. But we will shock him during the primary. The man is getting too desperate."

The National Executive Committee meeting of the ruling party scheduled for Tuesday was abruptly postponed till Thursday after tense encounter between PDP governors and the party chair, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo. Also, Jonathan pleaded that he needed more time to consult with governors over the zoning controversy that is threatening to tear the party apart.

But before the Thursday NEC meeting, the president and the party held a separate meeting with the governors. A source said no sooner than the meeting began than Jonathan launched into a long speech begging the governors and other participants to save him from imminent disgrace at the primaries.

"He practically begged" the source said. "He appeared helpless as he pleaded with us to support him as he would spend only one term in office. He argued that the division within the PDP might cause the party victory at the election and that every member would suffer if that happens."[/b]

Shortly after the meeting 18 governors and two deputy governors released the joint statement below:

"At the emergency meeting of PDP Govs held Thursday 16th day of Dec, 2010 and having deliberated extensively on democratic practices the world over, observed as follows:

*Democratic systems all over the world recognise the principle of incubency and continuity.

*Entrenched Democratic culture persistent in presidential system and our constitution entitles our President to run for a second term which the PDP Govs support.

*The Govs also recognise the Yaradua/Jonathan ticket and therefore hereby support and endorse President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to contest the 2011 election as the PDP Presidential candidate for a period of four years."

But Kwara State Governor, Bukola Saraki, who is chairman of the PDP Governors' Forum, refused to sign the statement. Saraki is backing former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar who is the consensus candidate of some Northern elders for the election.

SaharaReporters had revealed how Jonathan , at a meeting with the Save Nigeria Group in Abuja, had sent a clear message to the governors, most of whom are corrupt, that if they failed to back him, he would use the largely discredited Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to hound them. He also reportedly threatened that he would compel the party to deny them the tickets of the party. The names of the 18 governors that endorsed him were not immediately available but our source at the meeting said, the Kwara state governor and one of the candidates involved in the so-called "Northern Consensus" did not sign today's endorsement of Jonathan

To demonstrate his seriousness, according to our source, Jonathan has asked his Special Adviser on Amnesty Matters, Timi Alaibe, to purchase the governorship ticket of the party for Bayelsa State. Jonathan, the source said, plans to use Alaibe to dislodge Governor Timipre Sylva, who is suspected of disloyalty. "The president might use similar tactics on other recalcitrant governors," the source added.

Jonathan's bid for the ruling party's nomination has sharply divided the party and the prospect of being strongly challenged by ex-vice president, Atiku Abubakar, anointed by some PDP elders from the north, is staring Jonathan in the face.

Atiku and his allies, former military dictator, Ibrahim Babangida, Kwara State governor, Saraki and former National Security Adviser, Aliyu Gusau are yet to react to the development. But a source in their camp said they would respond in a "politically deft and ferocious manner" to counter Jonathan's new "arm twisting tactics".

Alxmyr:

The matter is settled. They went to court and court gave his clear verdict. Also the new electoral law is an improved version one. Most importantly, Atiku is fighting a lost battle. 20 states PDP governors has endorsed Jonathan. They entered into concrete agreement with him just as Atiku entered into agreement with IBB, Gusau and Saraki.

The National Assembly caucus has reached a bidding agreement with Jonthan.

State party chairmen of PDP are with GEJ.
20 Speakers of PDP controlled Houses of Assembly are for Jonathan.
All the Local Government chairmen of the 20 states are for Jonathan.
Where will Atiku get his delegates?
This matter is settled. The only option he has is to move to another party if he is so intimidated.

yes and this clear verdict was: "although Article 7.2 (c) of the PDP constitution, 2009, as amended, recognised the principle of zoning and rotation of party and elective offices, but that the power to nominate and sponsor candidates to an election is vested in a political party and the exercise of this right is the domestic affair of the party.”

Refusing to order the PDP to enforce its contested zoning principle, the court, however, maintained that the onus was on the party to respect the provisions of the said Article 7.2(c), stressing that it was subsisting and binding on the party, its organs and members, despite the fact that it remained a political question that is non justiceable in the court of law."

any fool knows that the PDP constitution contains zoning as one of its main tenants - including this Justice Lawal Hassan Gunmi. his point was was he couldnt uphold it because he judged that it was an internal party issue and not a legal issue. when this case gets to the appeals court we shall see if the judge there takes the same view. me thinks not. bearing in mind that JEGA has already said : "the commission will not accept candidates who violated their parties’ constitution". so if the judge has found that 'the constitution of PDP recognises the principle of zoning and rotation" and JEGA is tell us that he will not accept candidates who violate their parties' constitution, then where does that leave GEJ?

as for you other points:

1) the NASS members cannot vote at the primaries
2) where is your source please
3) again where is your source

in fact if you know anything about politics you'll know that over 60% of the PDP delegates are northern with around 15% being from the east. if you think that GEJ is going to make any serious inroads into either region you are very mistaken. that's even if it gets to that stage. the smart money is on him being disqualified by the courts.

GAME OVER. in fact, it never even started.

Alxmyr:

If una like go and jump into Lake Chad.
Atiku is warned. Nobody will allow a confused Al Majiri who is a wanted fugitive to come here and destabilise Nigeria for us and eventually run to Afghanistan or Iran because he can never dare enter US.
If he tries it next time, he will know the difference between khaki and leather.
If he is so disgruntled and dissatified, he should move all his supporters to another party and test his strength there as he did in 2011.
As for PDP, the NEC has decided. And great grand father of Atiku cannot change the decision.
If he is not satisfied, he should go and die.

i wouldn't trust that group of imbeciles with organising christmas lunch let alone a highly explosive legal matter. this matter will be settled in a court of law my friend.

BUJA, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Twenty of Nigeria's powerful state governors said on Thursday they would support President Goodluck Jonathan as the ruling party candidate in elections next April, giving him a boost ahead of a tough battle in the primaries.

History has always favoured the incumbent in Nigerian elections but Jonathan's bid is controversial because of a ruling party pact that power should rotate between the mostly Muslim north and largely Christian south every two terms.

Jonathan is a southerner who inherited office when President Umaru Yar'Adua, a northerner, died during his first term this year and some northern factions in the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) are opposed to his candidacy.

There are 26 state governors in the PDP, forming an influential caucus whose support is seen as key to Jonathan's chances of success. The remaining 10 states are opposition held.

"Democratic systems all over the world recognise the principle of incumbency and continuity," said Ibrahim Shema, governor of the northern state of Katsina, following an emergency meeting of PDP governors in the capital Abuja.

"The governors , hereby support and endorse President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to contest the 2011 election as the PDP presidential candidate for a period of four years only," Shema said, reading from a statement signed by the 20 governors.

Africa's most populous nation is a generally peaceful country of more than 200 ethnic groups, but regional rivalries and tribalism bubble not far under the surface.

A commitment from Jonathan to stand for one term then hand over to a northerner might appease some in the north, but it could also anger some southern factions who had bet on the rotation agreement giving them a shot at the presidency in 2015.

Jonathan is the first head of state from the restive Niger Delta, the heartland of Africa's biggest oil and gas industry, and security analysts fear a backlash if he is perceived to have been cheated out of the country's highest office.

HEATED RHETORIC

The PDP controls more than two thirds of Nigeria's 36 states and has a majority in both houses of parliament. Its candidate has won every presidential race since the end of military rule just over a decade ago, meaning victory in the primaries has always been tantamount to winning the presidency.

But this time the race is wide open.

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was chosen by a group of northern politicians as a consensus candidate to challenge Jonathan at the PDP primaries, due in early January.

Former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida, another influential ruling party figure, threatened last week to quit the PDP if Jonathan runs on its ticket.

The rhetoric has already become heated.

"Those who make peaceful change impossible, make violent change inevitable," Atiku was quoted as saying by Nigerian newspapers on Thursday, comments which Jonathan's camp condemned as treasonable.

"Any office you are aspiring to in this land , is not worth the blood of any Nigerians," Jonathan told the PDP meeting.

"We cannot play politics as if we are fighting a civil war."

Nigeria's secret service weighed into the debate, warning "unguarded statements" were fuelling sectarian hatred and that it would take action against any politician whose words risked "undermining and subverting the stability of the nation".

Christians, Muslims and animists from a patchwork of ethnic groups live peacefully side by side in most Nigerian cities.

But hundreds of people died in religious and ethnic clashes at the start of the year in the central Middle Belt and there are fears politicians could try to stoke such rivalries as the elections approach.

The tensions are rooted in decades of resentment between indigenous groups, mostly Christian or animist, who are vying for control of fertile farmlands and for economic and political power with mostly Muslim migrants and settlers from the north.

congratulations on exchanging 490 votes in the south east for the 20 votes you'll get from the governors. if my maths serves me correctly that little deal just put you guys down another 470.

WAY TO GO TEAM GEJ!!!

atiku is 100% right.

the past 8 months have been a window into life without zoning. all this tension, division, animosity and suspicion is a direct result of not having a system in place which guarantee the full participation of all zones in this country's leading office. unfortunately the ambition of OBJ (GEJ is too weak and incompetent to take full responsibility for this situation) has pushed this country into a position were reasonable people are fearing for the stability of the country.

atiku will not be charged for treason. yet again the so called president and commander in chief chooses to hide behind spokesmen and faceless sources. the man himself hasn't uttered a word.

i don't understand jona - are you too scared to speak to us since embarrassing yourself on CNN

marcdunu:

Which is why GEJ should leave PDP to safeguard whatever majority aspirations he thinks he represents. There are rules as enshrined in PDP constitution which even a Nigerian court of law has recognised. In the interest of peace GEJ must respect the PDP constitution or quit the PDP. Rules are rules, they are there to be obeyed.

They are not designed for you to ignore claiming to represent any ridiculous majority aspirations because if our politics has always been about majority aspirations GEJ would have still been a Bayelsa local politician by now.

He should not destroy Nigeria, the constitution of the PDP on zoning must be respected by members of that party. Anybody who does not agree with it are well in their right to disagree but they will also have to quit.

Disobeying the internal rules of a party is a recipe for catastrophe and confusion.

the above is all that needs to be said on this matter.

this is the problem when you send illiterate journalists to cover political events; inevitably the rule message gets lost and distorted.

Gbawe:

Where did Atiku talk of Court battle in this article ? Why not try to operate within the parameters of what we are all reading rather than be quick to insult others? You cannot link what you have read elsewhere to what is written here to then pronounce others "morons". To be on the same page , we must all speak based on this article or show links to other articles to strenghten our arguements.

and then you go on to say this:

A Presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar Wednesday warned that if the leadership
of the Party and that of the country jettison the already existing zoning arrangement, it would amount to making violence change inevitable.

can you see that all you have done is to quote a journalist? can you see that you have just quoted their opinions and their evaluation of the situation which is no more valid than yours or mine. if you are going to quote anybody then i think it would be advisable to quote Alhaji Atiku Abubakar himself.

And this is what he said:

"Before I end this short address let me send a message to our great party the PDP: if the PDP does not reform, it stands the risk of making itself
irrelevant. Let me again send another message to the leadership of PDP that those who make peaceful change impossible, make violent change
inevitable.”

any clown can see that this message is addressed to members and leaders of PDP because he has clearly said so in his statement. he is talking about the futures success of the party, the future stability of the party, the future relevance of the party.

this is a internal pdp affair and seeing that most of you are anti pdp i fail to understand why you are becoming so clearly distressed by the saga that eventually kills this Behemoth.

you simple minded morons. the quote that you are all getting your little knickers in a twist over was originally given by JFK when he said "Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable" in relation to having free and fair elections. Now as you can see from atiku's speech he was referring to the PDP "leadership" when he made this statement (ie, if you continue with your illegal non-zoning agenda, then we will fight you in court, on the beaches, blah blah blah).

He was not referring to the general public, this was not a call to arms for the common Nigerian and this is not the beginning of the apocalypse.

And how you've all managed to get so excited about something that is relatively straight forward to see is laughable.

You guys are clowns. I can't believe you were about to start world war three over a little JFK quote.

Atiku's only crime here is probably a little plagiarism by his speech writers; but then again maybe they over estimated the intellectual capacity of their audience.

Beaf:

Last time I looked, it was you guys that were not equipped. But it is a very hefty call to defend some of the worst criminals ever to grace public life, so no real surprises.
Instead of you IBB, Tinubu and Atiku supporters to put up some semblance of a defense of these seedy collection of stratospheric kleptomaniacs, drug barons and murderers, you are going, Beaf this, Beaf that.

Its all a bit weak, don't you guys think? Your candidates are all irredeemably blemished sleaze bags, its not too late to do the right thing and campaign that they be given very long and deserved jail terms. They are a plague on the country.

GEJ stands tall and brims with vision.
GEJ carry go!!!
[size=21pt]Goodluck Nigeria![/size]

the problem everyone has with you is that you have heralded gej as a superhero, when actually, and by all accounts, he is well bellow average; therefore you come across as either deluded or deceitful - neither of which are good character traits. you will never hear the supporters of IBB, tinubu and atiku making such ludicrous statements about how their candidate is this "country's savior", one which you have made on numerous occasions.

unfortunately there are no perfect politicians in this country; what you have are those that are better than others, but as long as you continue to force feed everyone with this nonsense that "gej is the best thing since sliced bread" then you are going to be met with fierce resistance - and rightly so.

my advice to you is that you stop with your witless attacking of anything anti-gej and actually participate in a debate.

sochan:

@Beaf,

give it up before you choke on all this vomit you have been spewing here. The time is up, give up and join the Ribadu fight

he can't; he put all his eggs into one useless, feeble basket.

Beaf:

No, its just the end game. Some major muscle was flexed in the faces of the governors to show that there are several easy alternatives for the man with a full hand of cards. They will line up firmly behind GEJ before the week is out, no more governors forum and other anti-democratic stuff.

Are sensible and upright folk meant to be praise worshipping thieving scum like IBB and Atiku?
The things one hears! Damn!

My ear no go blind for NL o!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

You desperate little boy. I beg, tell me what happened, Mr Know It All??!!

if you've read any of my previous posts you would understand my position on the "self-anointed savior of nigerian politics".

i just used this article to rile the gej apologists out there.

and now dora leaves. this administration is well and truly in its last throes.

^^

And which one of his children are you??

so the inevitable is finally upon us: GEJ is slowly and surely losing control of "his" party. the question then remains: what party does he go to when he loses the primaries?

In spite of the grandstanding by its National Working Committee (NWC) that all is well with the party, the 54th Peoples Democratic Party  National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting ended yesterday abruptly without the ratification of the timetable and party guidelines for its primary for the 2011 general election.

National Chairman of the PDP, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo in his opening remarks had allayed the fears of party members over the reversal of the party primaries. Aside the move to give automatic membership of NEC to federal lawmakers, the PDP governors were worried over the purported plan to reverse the order of primary initially presented to the 53rd NEC of the party which gave precedence for the governorship primary over the presidential primary and were smarting for a showdown. But Nwodo in his speech said the PDP NWC was not contemplating any reversal.

“Today, we present for NEC approval the timetable and party guidelines for the primaries leading up to the 2011 general elections.

They do not differ from those we presented to the 53rd NEC meeting except for the dates which have been brought  forward. We, therefore, do not envisage any problems with their  being approved by today’s NEC meeting.’’

[b]But few minutes after his opening remarks and President Jonathan speech, the NEC dissolved into a closed door session. But journalists were stunned when the president stormed out of the meeting few minutes after.

A Daily Sun source at the meeting revealed that the PDP National Chairman, Dr. Nwodo  who had been embroiled in battle for the control of the Enugu chapter of the party with the  Enugu State Governor, Sullivan Chime had ordered the chairman of the  state chairman of the party, Vita Abba out of the NEC meeting, but an agitated Governor Chime who had been spoiling for a showdown with PDP national chairman, who is also from Enugu, insisted that Abba should not leave the meeting.  Some of the PDP governors had backed Governor Chime’s stance to the consternation of President Goodluck Jonathan, Vice President, Namadi Sambo,  PDP National Chairman, Dr. Okweslieze Nwodo and other leading party stalwarts seated.    The PDP NWC had dissolved the  Vita  Abba-led Enugu State chapter of the party executive.[/b]

National Publicity Secretary of the party, Professor Ahmed Alkali told journalists that the NEC had been adjourned to reconvene on Thursday to give room for further consultations in view of critical importance of issues to be deliberated upon.
“This decision became necessary because of the need to include all stakeholders in the process of arriving at mutually acceptable decisions.’’

But Daily Sun findings revealed that the meeting ended in a deadlock because of the raging crisis over the desperate move by the PDP NWC to give automatic membership of NEC to federal  lawmakers on the party’s platform ahead of the national convention. The new deal had removed the state chairmen and secretaries of the party, youth leaders and speakers of states Houses of Assembly as delegate to the PDP national convention.

After the adjournment, Daily Sun findings revealed that leadership  of the National Assembly, members of the PDP NWC,  former national chairmen of the party and members of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) moved to the presidential villa to meet with President Goodluck Jonathan on the way forward over the controversial move to give automatic membership of NEC to senators and members of the House of Representatives.
The PDP governors moved to the Kwara Governor’s Lodge, Asokoro for further deliberations.

To placate the youths and women leaders, Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Josephine Annenih met with them, as the aggrieved state chairmen and secretaries also went into closed door meeting. Also in his opening remarks, Dr.  Okwesilieze Nwodo  in what could be taken as a veiled reaction to the threat of the PDP Governors who had threatened to court to contest the contentious  amendment of the Electoral Act to make federal lawmakers automatic members of  NEC, warned that the party would no longer tolerate members who rush to go to court over intra-party disputes.

“The party will no longer tolerate our members who rush to the court at the least excuse when they have not exhausted the internal party mechanism for settling intra- party disputes. This tendency has continued to frustrate the smooth administration of the party. It has destroyed the peace and unity so critical for the growth and development of the party. You are enjoined to conduct yourselves with decorum all through the campaign periods and the main elections to deepen our democracy and bring our nation the desired international acclaim.’’

President Goodluck Jonathan in his remarks, however, sounded reconciliatory, as he appealed to members to always seek for reconciliation and peace in the best interest of the party. President Jonathan submitted that the court could only give legal judgment, not moral judgment.
“This period is quite critical, not for PDP alone but also the whole country. But PDP is on top because anything about PDP is paramount, it is because we set the agenda and everybody knows that and that’s why they are competing with us.

“That’s why other parties would want to participate in our primaries, even though we don’t even know when they conduct their own primaries, because we don’t want to be involved. Everybody wants to witness and report about the PDP primaries.

“That is accepting that no matter what anybody says, we are the ruling party and that’s why the challenges are more on us. It is because any ripples in PDP would appear like a wind. The wind in other places may not even be noticed as ripples and the challenge of leadership is more on us. So, let me use this opportunity to only plead with those of you, especially those of us who are aspirants at one level or the other to play the politics that would show that we are members of the same political party and at the end of our primaries elections, we must come together to protect the interest of the PDP and no matter the challenges we have, we must realize that other parties want to weaken us.

“Some of the things you read in the newspapers about PDP members wanting to defect, some of these stories may be true, but some of it is just to weaken us and begin to make us feel that, oh!, everybody is leaving PDP .
“We shouldn’t take some of the stories too seriously but at the same time we must be mindful of how we conduct ourselves in this process of primaries elections.
“One must say clearly that this is the ruling party and we would expect all sectors, all organs of the party to know that we belong to one party . By God grace, by hard work we control the National Assembly and most states Houses of Assembly; by God grace, we control the Nigerian  Governors’  Forum because we have more members in the forum, anything that the PDP governors decide that’s what the governors take. Of course, we have no choice because democracy is all about numbers and by God grace, we are in the majority.

“All these sectors must work together; we must see ourselves as one and the issue of one group may be isolating themselves, isn’t in the best interest of this country  and I plead with us that we must realize that any political difference, dialogue resolves issues and I believe that court doesn’t even  resolve political differences. Courts can give you legal judgment, but not moral judgment. But if people sit down together and reason together, they will be able to resolve crisis and when crisis are resolved at that level, it is always better than some other options, especially when internal crises are involved. I am calling all of us to see how we can come together and resolve our differences, if there are any, and let us play the politics in a way that we know that we belong to the same PDP.

“Just like all members of the same body. There is no way you can chop off one of your hands  or nose and remain normal. There is no way we can remove any of these organs of the party and the party will remain the same. If we isolate the PDP NWC, there would be no PDP for us to come to. For us to be a solid party that everybody looks up to, to set the political agenda, then all these various bodies must work together. I believe no matter the differences, we have the capacity to resolve our differences and we would surely resolve our differences.’’

Beaf:

Not if all you have is a miserable pun, while your opponent is a grandmaster with an array of rooks, queens and positional advantage (at which point, you knock your king over in resignation ).

How can anyone hold the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to a stalemate? How? Court ke! Dem neva born dat judge!

but you guys just lost a huge battle today in the senate

and wait until the appeals court in the next few weeks, then you're going to see some real fireworks

your "grandmaster" is really just a local politician with no political base whatsoever. checkmate coming up in 3 moves baby.

the guy is a thug and a liar and a thief.

but what i would like to know is: what was he before he became a tinubu?

The "Ministry" of Information is a complete waste of public funds and the "minister" (not necessarily dora) is a glorified press secretary. It really should be scrapped.