₦airaland Forum

zeeleso:
I wish I could, but he's the president of Nigeria and also a presidential candidate. He shouldn't be left alone, his policies should be examined, his actions scrutinised. He is answerable to us. We are his employers(at least supposed to be). I'm glad its getting boring to you, that means you must have read enough of the complaints and a gaffe on his side and the following condemnation is no longer news to you and frankly most people. But until he's not the president of Nigeria and also a presidential candidate, we wont stop complaining when he's wrong. And frankly he makes the job of the opposition all too easy.

Lagosboy:
When people cannot differentiate between a townhall and a rally , there is a problem.

Can anyone show me a rally of GEJ with this kind of town hall crowd. This center is at least like 7 - 10,000 capacity. Each one goes home to convice his family members and friend and you have like 100000 votes from this alone. Easily Buhari can win 20% of votes in Edo state bearing in mind people in the northern Edo areas would massively vote for him.

The BB train would be hitting Lagos next week God willing and i will confirm the date when it has been finalised.

Ikengawo:
the attendance looks low

seguno2:
Between Buhari and Mubarak

Guest Columnist: By AOIRI OBAIGBO

Thursday, March 10, 2011

It is ironic that General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), should be the one referring to the revolutions in Egypt and other parts of the Middle
East and urging the people of Nigeria to roll up our sleeves in revolt on his behalf after his predictable loss in April election. It is the
mother of all ironies. Buhari and Muhammad Hosni Mubarak are both military adventurists and they arrived the corridors of and sealed up our voices with a decree and many who like pain without gain look back to Buhari's disdain with nostalgia. For the rest
of us, released from the dungeon at his exit, we waited for time to give us the opportunity to reject him. Twice is obviously not enough
for him but to insult our memories by waving the flag of a freedom fighter, inciting us to carry placards behind him is unfair.

He is certainly not Pa Imoudu, Anthony Enahoro, Gani Fawehinmi nor Wole Soyinka. He is not Alex Ekwueme or Aminu Kano. He is
certainly not Bakare. Names apart, we know the icons of our numerous battles for freedom.

We clearly remember him as a usurper who jailed Fela Anikulapo, Nduka Irabor, sacked Vera Ifudu and treated every one with a
superiority complex. He grabbed power or was given power but he did not have enough strength of purpose to sustain the despotic
regime he unleashed on us. He cannot be described as a strong leader in anyway. He was sacked by Babangidda as casually as
Ernest Shonekan was sacked by Abacha.

Some people say that he had good intentions. That Shagari's government was in a rot and all that. Buhari nursed the option of
supervising a fresh, free and fair election. That would have been the heroic thing to do but the allure of power got the better part of
him.

Like Mubarak, he was a man who wanted to build a tower but did not count the cost, did not invest due diligence and was slack in the
vigilance required. For starting something he was ill-equipped to complete, the nation was plunged into the darkest years in our
history.

There are so many reasons why we could not trust him with our mandate in these past elections. Even if we want to keep re-cycling
leaders from our past, Buhari has been told twice that he will not be given that privilege. We are yet to reward any principal beneficiary
of a coup with our mandate in our history. We want that to be a legacy that there must be historical consequences for ending a
republic.

Nobody but the most generous and forgiving Nigerians would lend their votes to a man who terrified us with whips and gave soldiers
liberty to thrust us with their boots in the name of instilling discipline.

Buhari justified the military's seizure of power by castigating the civilian government as corrupt, and he left us hostage to soldiers
who were free to whip us and kick us into their trucks in a jungle contraption known as War Against Indiscipline (WAI). Discipline
without respect or regards for human rights.

The war absolved all his energy and focus. Buhari's notion of discipline was extrajudicial in deposition, it was barbaric and
draconian. It quickly became a government by the whip without any real sense of purpose. There were also contradictions. He was
willing to kill drug pushers but was also willing to let in several uninspected suitcases.

Buhari's brand of whiplash discipline included destroying kiosks in streets that have remained unattended to up to this minute. He
had a chance to respectfully achieve a speedy transition like Abdulsalami Abubakar but he held on. Still is longing for it.

He was temporarily out of power, licking his wounds throughout Babangida's dribbling days. He resurfaced as a highly respected
chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) under the most nightmarish character to ever bestride Aso Rock, Sani Abacha.

Abacha's dictatorship was brutal and venal. After the civil war, Abacha's regime was the darkest for us. The man attracted criticisms
from human rights organisations at home and abroad. Nigeria was hungry for heroes. We remember the faces and the voices that
rose up and kept faith with the freedom of Nigeria's very soul.

It was an auspicious time for Buhari to shake his fist and urge us to resist like the Egyptians he is so proud of now. Afterall, Abacha
was actually Babangida's lieutenant who announced the coup against Buhari. Can anyone remember him in the vanguard for us?
Was he in our rank when we fought Abacha for freedom? Buhari decided to accept the dictator's offer to head the Petroleum Task
Force.

Obasanjo along with, Shehu Musa Yar'Adua, were charged in 1995 with planning a coup against Abacha. Along with several other
military officers and number of civilians, including two journalists, they received various sentences ranging from death penalty for
Obasanjo and Yar'Adua, to several years in jail for others. Following international pressure, Abacha could not carry out the
sentences.

Buhari, serving as chairman of the PTF in that government, did not lift a finger in protest at the tyranny, the terrorism of the state, extra-
judicial killings, including the scandalous waste of Ken Saro Wiwa. Throughout the years of humiliation and repression of Nigerians,
Buhari was in silent and cosy working relationship with Abacha and his PTF was a veritable source of funds for Abacha's insane
greed.

Add this silent acquiescence with evil to Buhari's dictatorial profile as head of state and the natural conclusion is that this General
who has been in power for since Mubarak of Egypt was a deputy has little or no regard for political freedom.

He appears more like a pharaoh than all other aspirants. After seven decades of disdain for political freedom and human rights, the
man who was absent when we were groaning is waving a flag of freedom as a strategy for securing power again. This is the mother
of all ironies.

Hopping from one strange bedfellow like the late bohemian Dr. Chuba Okadigbo to the fiery Pastor Tunde Bakare cannot erode the
one thing we share and cherish- our history.

He came out of a government that was terrorising our citizens with Saro Wiwa and many prisoners of conscience dangling around its
neck with the saintly mien of Pontius Pilate washing his hands clean. But there is no criticism on record from this pious man of
celebrated integrity.

How a man who slept peacefully while tyrants danced over crying Nigerians expect the same people to go on rampage to advance
his 1983 vision of headship is the most amazing irony of this season.

Like Mubarak, he does not care that another generation is due to emerge to drive a new vision and stir towards new possibilities. As
with his aloofness when we were under Abacha's yoke, he seems to feel comfortable at 69 years old, dream of power for another
eight years. He would be 77 years old. He would then spend another eight years trying to establish himself as a godfather.

In any case, how many years does it take for a serious visionary leader to groom his Joshua? Instead of trying to patch up his old
uniform with a new cloth like Bakare, he should be spending his honestly made fortune on funding a Bakare presidency as a legacy
to the nation he loves so dearly. Some genuine art of penitence for igniting a fire that could have ended this beautiful dream called
Nigeria, coming true so painfully.

Nigeria Village Square
interesting post,

rasputinn:
^^^
Let her just swim and sink in the dirt joor,she must have nerves of steal to be complaining after "enjoying" the dirty husband for 10 yrs

Donlittle:
Was that democratic or military? there was nothing like freedom of press. So he can and can do it under military rule

Mkpotu:
It is allowed in politics, without offense to anybody. If Buhari wins tomorrow, will he allow another political party to come to the National Station to advertise that there are NO roads, no hospitals, no schools etc built by him, his party (CPC) and his government.

It is not out of place to reject such offensive advert by the National Station because Buhari, Ribadu, Shekarau, Pat Utomi etc will do same thing!

tollu:
His comment is just like saying the sun is hot, he stated the obvious. We all know that no political party owns Nigeria. What has he done to make the lot of the common Nigerian man better? Burying his head in the sand.He's in a position that can effect massive change and yet all he can say is obvious things. Tunde Bakare, na you biko

Ujujoan:
The fuch wey e don fuch nko? can he gi9ve that back?

It's still too early for him to be weeping . . . . no matter how much he spent!

Eziachi:
So your opinion, Americans that you borrowed you system word to word are silly for organising debates all these years?
Debate is now part and parcel of modern democracy, even the the conservative British and Australians now has one and to you its pointless.

If you are a manager of a team, you will sign a player without watching him play even for once. Communication is very essential in the modern democracy, that a leader need to sale his policies to the public and this debate gives you a glimpse of how each candidate will communicate with you in future.
Since Jonathan emerged how many time have you seen him addressed the press, talk from his heart and imprumptu without reading from something? Never!
Hate him or love him, OBJ but he is a 1st class communicator.

Ujujoan:
[b]So why are you crying [/b]You should be grateful to God for saving you from that kind of marriage!

slimghost:
Sai Buhari in where? this Gidi? Girlie, you sure dont know where you are.

CAN SOMEONE ANSWER THIS QUESTION PLS
Why did Buhari appoint a man he jailed for looting(during his regime) the DG of his campaign organization?

blink182:
Are you on designer wee.d?

Nuesbab:
GEJ is a opportunist and he is ready to use anybody and anything to actualize his ambition. does name like OGD strike any cord