₦airaland Forum

This is just the beginnig, The PDP has not seen anything yet until April when peoples power will triump. The Nigerian masses must take their destiny into their hands or remain slaves forever.

Another ranting from a deluded mind where idiocy contended with absurdity and both came out tops.

[quote author=Ma_J_Blige link=topic=599884.msg7676177#msg7676177 date=1296986459]he talks about his political ambition on the pulpit?[/quote]If I may ask,what is wong in that?The church is one of his primary constituencies.

What better name do you call a man who was once receiving orders from TURAI YAR'ADUA?

A FIRST CLASS WEAKLING

Jarus:
I like this. Permit me to use this on my Facebook.

Go ahead Jarus and proclaim the message everywhere,It is a privilege.

Let this word fill every heart and every mouth in every part of the nation: Buhari-Bakare

Let it awaken every man, every woman, every boy and every girl: Buhari-Bakare

In the north, in the south, in the east and the west: Buhari-Bakare

Let Zuma Rock amplify it and let Aso Rock get ready for it: Buhari-Bakare

Let the rocks of Dutse echo it and spread it throughout the north: Buhari-Bakare

Let it roll down Dayi hills of Katsina: Buhari-Bakare

let the people of Jos shout it aloud with their sonorous voices: Buhari-Bakare

Let the waters of the Niger bring it down south to the Niger Delta; Buhari-Bakare

Let the people of Odi, Ogoni, Oloibiri and Opoma Kingdom weep no more: Buhari-Bakare

Let the market women of Aba and the people of Anambra rejoice: Buhari-Bakare

Let Olumo Rock blast it aloud and spread it throughout the Southwest: Buhari-Bakare

And let Ibadan get ready for change: Buhari-Bakare

Let the streets of Lagos go agog with it: Buhari-Bakare

Let it become the shout of every bus conductor: Buhari-Bakare

The greetings of professionals: Buhari-Bakare

The lawyer to the client: Buhari-Bakare

The doctor to the patient: Buhari-Bakare

The banker over the counter: Buhari-Bakare

The seller to the buyer: Buhari-Bakare

The coach to the player: Buhari-Bakare

The ringtone on every phone: Buhari-Bakare

The lesson of every teacher: Buhari-Bakare

The sermon of every preacher: Buhari-Bakare

The message of every imam: Buhari-Bakare

The melody of every singer: Buhari-Bakare

The rhymes of every rapper: Buhari-Bakare

Let everyone who has the ears of the young people of this great nation spread the message among the young: Buhari-Bakare.

Let 2face and 2Shot sing in one voice about two men with one goal and one agenda – to save Nigeria, to change Nigeria and to make Nigeria great: Buhari-Bakare

Let Banky West in his mellifluous tone tell the young people that East, West, North and South, Nigeria can bank on only the best and the brightest: Buhari-Bakare

Let Zakky Adzee join these men on the train of transparency and beam the true light in the dark crevices of our nation to expose and chase out of power those with hidden agenda and replace them with these men of integrity, transparency, probity and accountability: Buhari-Bakare.

Let MI and Mode 9 craft a rhyme in one line that the young minds may realize and realign with these great minds: Buhari-Bakare.

Let Naeto C and Weird MC make them see that this change they see is what we need: Buhari-Bakare.

Let Sunny Ade and Sunny Nneji help the elderly lay aside the prejudices in their memories of the past of these great men and let Nigerians see the sunny side of their lives which is about to dawn on our nation to bring about the change we need: Buhari-Bakare

Beaf:
I wonder if he asked Buhari before jumping the gun; as running mate, he is not the person to lay challenges. This is the first sign of that team imploding in an almighty heap before April.

The proposed debate is already sending jitters down your spine because your beloved Jonathan with a questionable PH.D but has a smattering command of the English Language and his deputy Sambo who speaks passable English are no match for the eloquent and articulate duo of Buhari-Bakare.

Pastor of the Latter Rain Assembly, Tunde Bakare, surprised Nigerians recently when he agreed to be the running mate of General Muhammadu Buhari, presidential candidate of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), in forthcoming general elections. Nigerians know him as a fiery preacher with many devoted followers.

The preacher made his way into national politics, as the convener of the Save Nigerian Group (ANG), when the late President Umar Yar’Adua was ill and receiving treatment in Saudi Arabia. He led men and women to protest, on the streets of Abuja and Lagos, over what he saw as a vacuum in the Presidency.
In this interview, Bakare justified his decision to pair with Buhari in the April presidential election. Revealed how Buhari called to offer him the position of a running mate, he said he was initially reluctant but later changed his mind, after consulting with people who have a stake in his life.

The pastor is confident that Nigerians would embrace the social contract the CPC is offering the people. He challenged the PDP presidential and vice presidential candidates to a television debates. It is also his prayers that the progressives in Nigeria would come together to face the PDP at the general elections.

Q:You were not known to be a member of the CPC. How did General Muhammadu Buhari pick you as his running mate?
Ans:The General would be the appropriate person to answer that question. But I am sure he is a man of deep thought, as reflected in his politics and the circumstances of the nation. He extended that hand of fellowship to us and offered us this to serve the country. But he would be the appropriate person to answer how and why he did what he did.

Q:But you could tell us why you accepted the nomination when you have a church where you preside?
Ans:You know that it would have taken a lot of consideration, consultation and prayers. But that not withstanding, to whom much is given, much is expected. I use this opportunity to articulate not just in words what we believe in and the factors we have spent quality time on, which we know can turn Nigeria around. There is a great opportunity to put into practice those things we have learnt and those things we know can work. There are those things others have said over time can push Nigeria forward. At the bottom of the critical decision is the care for our country.

[b]Q[/b]:Some said you are not of any electoral value, as you are not a politician.
How do you react to that?
Ans:[/b]Those who said I have no electoral value are entitled to their opinion. I remember when Chief Obafemi Awolowo began the Action Group (AG); the NCNC that had predominance before he ventured into Nigerian politics, as it were, said he had no electoral value. But he won the election. Nigerians are not blind and they are not deaf. They can see and they can hear and they are putting their thoughts together. The elections of 2011 are different from previous elections.

[b]Q[/b]How?
[b]ANS:The bulk of those who will vote don’t even have party allegiance. They want to vote for those they know fear God. They would vote those who love the country and love the people and want to see change.

Q:[/b]What experience are you going to bring to the job, if elected, as people say you have no political experience?
[b]ANS:I do not doubt that they are entitled to their opinion. But if you are a student of the Bible and you read your scriptures and the word of God, Joseph was a prisoner and not even a pastor. He came out of prison and his only experience was when he was in his father’s house at the age of 17 and then he was sent into slavery. His only experience at resource management was human resource, material resource that he gathered in the house of Potifer. From there, he was lied against; he was sent to prison, and he was never a lawyer or a pastor and he rose out of prison to become a world class ruler. People should know that in the process of doing other things, we have been learning how to deal with human situations and national project is just an extension of that.

Q:[/b]If elected, what will happen to your church?
[b]ANS:My love for God and love for the people of God cannot wane. I relocated to the United States in 2000 with my family. Between then and 2010, when we returned home, nobody knew my family even relocated because at least one Sunday in a month, I was in church. If it would not be out of place for the president to go to mosque on Friday, it cannot be out of place for me to go to church to fellowship on Sundays.

Q:[/b]That means you will continue to preach?
[b]ANS:I will continue to serve my God in whatever capacity is allowed by law and given time, because it is a new role and new responsibilities would come with it. I can’t say you will see me going everywhere preaching, but I will still serve my God. It is not only by preaching that you serve God. There are other ways that you serve God. Those in government are considered ministers of God too. The Bible talks about all that Jesus began to do and to teach. So, the doing comes before the preaching. It is called the Acts of Apostles and not the preaching of the Apostles. So, let us not put the cart before the horse. But that does not mean that I will never preach again. I will continue to serve God and testify about His goodness.

Q:[/b]How would you marry politics with Christianity, as people believe that politics is very dirty?
[b]ANS:[/b]The problem with many that raise such question is simple: they believe politics is dirty and good men and God-fearing men shouldn’t go into politics. The more such men are not in politics, the more dirty people get into politics. The scripture says when the righteous is in authority, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, they moan, they groan. Do we want to continue groaning? Politics is dirty because dirty people are in it. If clean men get there, they will equally clean the atmosphere.

[b]Q:[/b]You came to national political scene, so to say, when you convene the Save Nigerian Group (SNG). You did not tell Nigerians that you would be contesting 2011 election? What happened?
[b]ANS:I never anywhere said I will seek elective office or I would join a party. That wasn’t my contemplation. But when the General (Buhari) made the call on January the 15, I was home in Lagos. He said: if I will accept, he will consider it a great honour by accepting to be his running mate. My first natural reaction was to say thanks, but no, thanks. I am content with what I am doing. I told the whole world that I was not going this way. I am a man of my words. I keep myself out of the bargain. I wish you well. And he said: “you have not only told the world, you have told me too. But I want you to please consider and call me back.” The process of responding took some days and hours of real thinking, critical thinking and talking to stakeholders in my life – the church, my family and elderly people in the kingdom of God. When I was convinced that it was a right thing to do, I told him, yes, I will run with you.

It was Martin Luther King Junior who said: “At critical moment when certain positions are to be taken, different dimensions would begin to crop up.” For instance: cowards would ask: “ Is it safe?” Vanity would ask: “Is it popular?” Those who are politically correct would ask: “Is it politic?” But conscience would ask: “Is it right?” Is it right for a man to offer his services to the nation? That is what we should be talking about. Am I disqualified in any form? That should be the issue. If I can vote and be voted for and there is nothing against me doing that, why not? Let us all rise and bring quality men, God-fearing men and women into our polity to save our nation and pull it back from the brink.

Q:[/b]What is the state of the alliance talks with other political parties?
[b]ANS:Regardless of what is out there in the press, we still consider it an important factor to our electoral victory in 2011. If PDP must be roundly defeated at the polls, those who consider themselves progressives must put Nigeria first at this time. The problem that I think we have is that those who desire to function in the public arena sometimes have ego bigger than the nation they want to rule. But with trustful give and take and putting the nation first above our personal agenda, it will require that we come together and face election against PDP. I think that is still going on and it is still continuing. There maybe individuals that do not think so, but I tell you that it would happen.

[b]Q:[/b]What has been responsible for the parties not being able to reach an understanding to work together?
[b]ANS:[/b]There is a committee working on this. They are working on different alliances and MOUs and they are better equipped to answer that question. You know I am just coming in and it is not proper to pass comments on what you have not been briefed thoroughly about. I was aware that those discussions are going on. From behind the scene, we encouraged it. We will still encourage it now. We will reach out to others and let them know this is not about us. It is about our nation, let us work together.

[b]Q:[/b]Does the CPC, as a party, have the structure, from local government to ward to face the octopus PDP at the 2011 polls?
[b]ANS:[/b]The CPC, as a new party, is gaining ground by the day. As we are talking now, more people are rushing in; more offices have been opened. The PDP has been in office for 12 years and CPC came in a few months ago. So, you cannot compare their structure. But the truth of it is that Rome was not built in a day. We are putting structures in place. The one that are in existence are functioning and more will come. Before you know it, the remaining period that we have before the elections, people would be surprised about how many people of goodwill are willing to support and create that structure. When there is a will, there is a way.

[b]Q[/b]General Buhari is not known to be a rich man and you are not known to be a millionaire. How do you hope to raise fund for the election?
[b]ANS:[/b]Nigerians must come to terms with whether they want to continue to monetise politics, so that people would spend billions only to get into power and loot the treasury. We want to deemphasise that. Yes, General Buhari may not be a rich man and, like you have said, I may not be a millionaire also. But you know that if God is in a movement, he would raise men to give to them.

Remember Jesus was born in a manger and wise men came from the East to give him gifts. Not only that, Barack Obama, when he was going to the 2004 convention of his party, he put in his card and he was rejected and a few years later, he became the president of America. Ordinary people gave to them and we know once this thing starts, ordinary people, men and women, boys and girls of goodwill, would not only give resources, in terms of money, but their time, their talent, their energy and their ability to mobilize their friends, their relations and their territory of influence to vote. At the end of the day, money politics would fail in Nigeria.

[b]Q:[/b]What is the ideology of CPC? How do you integrate yourself into the system?
[b]ANS:[/b]We talk about ideology, as if we are still polarising the world. I am talking about eastern world and western world, as if we are talking about capitalism and communism. Time has moved beyond that. The purpose of government is the welfare of the people of the country. That is the priority of government. That people’s needs are met; that we ensure there is security. That is the ideology of the hour. With all the billions voted for security, we see the insecurity in our land. That must stop. Corruption must not continue to eat into the fabric of our nation. The central ideology is that Nigeria must be saved. It must be changed and become great in our lifetime and the people of this country must not continue to suffer in the midst of plenty. Whatever policies, whatever programme we are putting in place would be articulated in our contract with Nigeria so that they know that it is not about us; it is not about title; it is not about popularity but the people of this country.

If the like of Awolowo, the like of the Ahmadu Bello, Azikiwe and the like of Okpara did not live beyond self, some of us would not be here today. Awolowo blazed so much people-oriented programme that gave the like of us education at that critical point of our national history. Where are those men? They must return and their values must come back and we must make people the focus of governmental programme, not just building fantasies in the air and voting billions on what would not touch the lives of ordinary people. If we can get to the root of the matter and make people the focus of our attention and the purpose of government to be the welfare of the people, that is the ideology that I will embrace and I believe CPC will embark upon.

[b]Q:[/b]What would be the thrust of your social contract with the Nigerian people?
[b]ANS:[/b]It cannot be business as usual. The local government chairman would come in broke and they will go home building mansions and all things. Funds that are voted for specific project would be executed within timeline and it would be obvious and evident to all Nigerians. You can be rest assured, I do not think I will come back richer than I am going in. I probably would come back broke. I don’t intend to touch anybody’s money but to put attention where it matters and to focus our energy on the development of the nation. You know you can trust General Buhari for that also. He has proved it over the years.

He is the only head of state without a petrol station. He has only two houses, one in Daura and they are just basic houses. He has no oil rig or oil well. He has no foreign account. He has no house abroad. He has lived even within his pension up to this time. He was petroleum minister and has no cent or one dollar per barrel sticking to his fingers. He has been governor in this country. He was Petroleum Trust Fund executive chairman and not a dime was traceable to him as being fraudulent. I think what Nigerians are face to face with is one vote for two honest men.

[b]Q:[/b]It is good you spoke about General Buhari this way, but you were once quoted to have said neither Buhari, nor Babangida nor Obasanjo would be part of the emerging Nigeria. Now, you are Buhari’s running mate.

How do you reconcile the contradiction?
[b]ANS:[/b]The Christian word Messiah is saviour of souls and of the world and I don’t like such words being used for mere men. The best of men are still men at the very best. I won’t call any man messiah. Everyman will contribute his quota to the development of the nation. I know men who are rising, who are going to do their best. Using the word Messiah is making man God. That is what I want to communicate. But besides that, you did not quote me accurately. What you are saying was in 2006 October. I said some of these old men should allow young men to operate, to come into power.

But the truth of it is that emphasis of the hour. The current emphasis of the hour is not generational shift but generational integration so that older and the younger can come together as demonstrated by Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Yakubu Gowon. Awolowo could father Gowon. He was 57 when Gowon was 30; they worked together to save Nigeria from that terrible time of our people in cold blood. May God heal the wound that it affected in our nation. Time has come for the young and the old, male and female to cooperate together and move on. 2006 quotation is not applicable to 2011. That was then, this is now.

Q:[/b]You were quoted as saying in the interview that neither of them would be president?
[b]ANS:In 2007, did they become president? They didn’t. That was my opinion for 2007. I didn’t say 2011 and I didn’t say they would never be president forever.

Q:[/b]So, pastor, your opinion now is different from your opinion at the time?
[b]ANS:Definitely, it is different. Remember, that is not peculiar to man. Even God Almighty spoke to Eli and said: “I said, now I say.” It is in the Bible. So, proceeding word is not what was said but the proceeding word of the hour is: this is the time of change. Nigeria has embraced this change. They would vote for God-fearing people who love this country and have demonstrated that they are not interested in materialism and they cannot be bought by gold but can put gold to use for the benefit of the society.

[b]Q:[/b]Many see you and Buhari as two strong characters. How do you avoid a clash when you have different opinions on issues?
[b]ANS:[/b]There cannot be a clash. Issues would be debated, if my attention is called. The constitution is very clear on who the boss is. I can only make known to him when and as when necessary if I see a different perspective. But that does not make me lord it over him, as long as the decision being taking is in the interest of not only the electorate and the people who voted us into power. He would not undermine the security of our people and those who voted us into power. There are bound to be differences in opinion, but it doesn’t have to create clashes. Do you have differences with your wife and you still live together? That is the way it would be.

[b]Q:[/b]Under what circumstance can you resign?
[b]ANS:[/b]I have firm principles I fought over the years. You don’t compromise principle, or you destroy yourself. General Buhari is also a man of principle. I don’t think either of us would violate the principle of uprightness, the principle of fairness, justice, fair play and the principle of individual liberty and freedom. Creating environment for our people to maximise their potentials and turn this country to a great country in our live time. If those things are never violated and I don’t see them being violated, there cannot be a reason for me to say I am resigning. If anything touches on my faith or compromise my faith in God or my values or my belief that people’s welfare should be the concern of government, it would be spoken loud and clear. But this is not a battle in which we are going with the mindset of resigning. Those who put their hands on the plough and turn back are not fit for the kingdom of God.

[b]Q:[/b]You are not just a Christian but also a leading pastor. General Buhari is a strong Muslim. Do you think he settled for you because of the need for Muslim /Christian ticket?
[b]ANS:[/b]General Buhari is the one to be asked that question. I will not be answering for him. We had interactions. Not only with him but even the sitting president and other political heavy weights in the country. If he makes his choice, he knows the values he was looking for. I am sure he knows those values. There are other leading Christians well known better than I am. If he didn’t call them, he must have his reasons. We seize the moment to contribute our quota. That he is a strong Muslim and I am a strong Christian should remove the doubt of anyone trying to Islamise Nigeria.

It is absurd and it is in the mind of propagandists who are spreading the rumour. It will surprise you to know that Buhari’s driver is a Christian and he has been with him for more than 10 years. This is not known to the whole world. All those who say Buhari has done this or that, let them show prove that one day, this is what he did and he has used his position either as governor, minister or as head of state at any time to deprive any Christian of what rightly belongs to him. How many people knew that when they were in power, Idiagbon’s wife was a Christian?
For a change, God is giving us the best of the North and the best of the South to come together to steered the ship of our country.

[b]Q:[/b]How do you hope to move the people of the South West to CPC? The ACN is domineering in the area.
[b]ANS:[/b]Once upon a time, the NCNC was so domineering in Western Region that Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe contested to become the premier of the western region. But another person arose and swept the carpet and became the dominant person. Intrigues and other things followed. But the truth of the matter is: the South western people are very enlightened. They know what they want. They know it when they see it. They have values and when the time comes, they will answer. You can’t call monkey a dog. They know the difference. We are building alliances with all stakeholders in the South West. If alliance with the ACN does not work, direct alliance with the people will work.

[b]Q:[/b]What is wrong with Jonathan government that you and Buhari want to take over from him?
[b]ANS:[/b]It is a question to be addressed at the appropriate time in a debate. I hope we would have a live television debate.

[b]Q[/b]Are you calling for a debate?
[b]ANS[/b]I am calling for one so that the issues can be faced. The 12 years of reckless display of power and I-don’t-care attitude of PDP. You ask them how many civilians have died in the course of riot and religious crisis in the country. They don’t know. Why don’t they know? It is because they don’t care. The theme for 2011 should be anything but PDP and the best we can see is CPC: General Buhari and my humble self.

SOURCE:http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2011/feb/05/national-05-02-2011-001.htm

How many more Nigerians does Goodluck need to be massacred in Jos and Borno before he is roused from his slumber to act as President who has the constitutional obligation to protect the lives of Nigerian citizens?This question is germane at this point time in time because for many weeks and months now,gangs of youths have continued to roam the streets of Jos and Borno,including surrounding communities like drunken hunters engaged in unrestrained shootings of innocent citizens which have led to unnecessary deaths and injuries inflicted on innocent citizens.

Goodluck is unperturbed by the mass murders that have occured and still occuring because his focus is on how to win the forthcoming presidential election and not protect the lives of citizens.

greateros:
Ahab! when beaf is there? He can talk(type) himself into everything and out of anything!

That guy na something else!

If I may ask, what sensible thing has Beaf said to fault the write-up other than a lame excuse that it was an old article to discredit the wife of his paymaster.

blacksta:
I will wait for team GEJ - to open the floor

They can't summon the guts to do that.

On September 11, 2006, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seized $13.5 million dollars (US) from Mrs. Patience Jonathan, the wife of then Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Goodluck Jonathan.

The International Herald Tribune quoted the EFCC spokesman, Mr. Osita Nwajah, as saying that the seizure was made after Mrs. Jonathan had allegedly laundered the money through an associate.

It was the second time in one month Mrs. Jonathan was hitting the scandal headlines. In August, the EFCC had obtained a court order to temporarily freeze N104 million she had allegedly tried to launder through one Mrs. Nancy Ebere Nwosu. The EFCC said it had reason to believe the seized funds belonged to the public. In a sworn statement, Mrs. Nwosu implicated Patience Jonathan, the EFCC said.

But remember, her husband was the Bayelsa State Governor at the time. And Mr. Jonathan’s government dashed to the defence of the First Lady of Bayelsa, alleging that the reports were part of a “plot to destabilize” the state. Government spokesmen were falling over each other to speak for Mrs. Jonathan. The Governor’s spokesman, Dennis Sami, described the allegations as a “charade,” the target of which the Governor.

“We are aware that the said Nancy Ebere Nwosu is a very remote relation of Her Excellency who has lived abroad for several years,” Mr. Sami said. “She is a successful businesswoman of no little means whose business concerns do not involve Mrs. Jonathan.”

Mrs. Jonathan’s spokesman, Kenneth Ekpelu, fired an e-mail to Vanguard newspaper in which she spoke of “her husband’s opponents who strangely perceive her as the soft spot in his political armour and won’t stop hammering away at her until their decisions to oust him from office are met.”

It is funny how these canned money-laundering defenses sound alike. Didn’t President Olusegun Obasanjo’s United States lawyer, Mr. Kunle Fagbenle, say last November that Andy Uba—who used part of some funds laundered by means of the executive jet (allegedly without Obasanjo’s permission) to shop for Obasanjo’s farms—could not be accused of money-laundering because Mr. Uba was “already a rich man”? And did not Obasanjo say the Uba scandal was only a “calculated attempt” to ruin his name?]

Anyhow, despite the massive protestations of Governor Jonathan, the EFCC pressed ahead. On August 22, 2006, Justice Anwuli Chikere of the Federal High Court, Abuja authorized the freezing of the N104 million “pending the conclusion of the investigation of the activities of the said persons in connection with their involvement in the acts of money laundering and other economic and financial crimes related offences.”

And then, barely three weeks later, Mrs. Jonathan was in the news again, reportedly being separated from an astounding $13.5 million in US dollars. She must have been one angry woman. But all that was one year ago.

Since then, the Jonathans have moved up in the world. They have left the relative squalor and poverty of a mere state governorship for the Vice-President’s estate. They have left the petty limitations of Bayelsa for the limitless expanse of Abuja. Only one man now speaks before Mr. Jonathan does.

Yes, Mr. Jonathan is the Vice-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the second most powerful man in the country. He is also the man President Yar’Adua is trusting with the challenge of the Niger Delta, where billions of dollars are expected to be spent over the next few years.

He has also been talking about democracy, corruption, the rule of law, and development. Just over a week ago, at the All-Delta Peoples Conference in the United States, Mr. Jonathan disclosed that President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua had authorised the release of all funds due the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). In addition, “Special funds will be provided for special projects in line with the master plan,” he said.

And Mrs. Jonathan has been speaking too, telling Nigerian women how they can become more fulfilled citizens. Up in the rarefied air of federal authority, you can preach any sermon, even while you have around your neck diamonds and jewels of $13.5 million, and gold bracelets of N104million.

This is all quite ironic. The Jonathans are living in a dream state. They moved into the governorship in Bayelsa when Dipreye Alameiseigha was consumed in a corruption blaze, and into the vice-presidency when the PDP sought someone to balance Umaru Yar’Adua on the PDP presidential ticket.

But they take quite a few scandals with them. Mr. Jonathan left Bayelsa State in a thick cloud of suspicion. Many Bayelsans believed his government had fleeced the treasury. While Mr. Jonathan said upon assumption of office he had inherited a state treasury N25billion thick, he refused to say what was left there as he vacated office. Bayelsans alleged he had swept the commonwealth clean, and that most public projects were left uncompleted.

Two months after he assumed the vice-presidency, Mr. Jonathan came under severe national pressure to follow the lead of his boss and make his assets declaration public. It took several nerve-wracking weeks of trying to dodge the responsibility, but he finally released the document, which showed the former university lecturer was worth an absolutely unbelievable N295 million. He had only been the Governor for 17 months, and this means he had been growing richer at the rate of close to N17 million per month. Naturally, wink-wink, he did not include his wife in his declaration.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Jonathan…

In its report of last April’s election, the New York based Council on Foreign Relations observed that Patience Jonathan was generally regarded as the “greediest person in Bayelsa State” and a woman of great cruelty. Last June, the Niger Development Monitoring and Corporate Watch (NIDDEMCOW), a local non-governmental organization, asked the EFCC to publish its report on Mrs. Jonathan.

The EFCC has not. This is not particularly strange; the Commission is not in the habit of issuing such reports. But nothing has been heard from the Commission since the flurry of activities of August and September last year. That coincides with the period before Mr. Jonathan emerged Yar’Adua’s running mate.

Apparently, even scandals of that magnitude are no obstacle in Nigeria. Mr. Jonathan got the vice-presidency, and the only man he is answerable to is about to put into his hands, theoretically for the Niger Delta, all the diamonds and gold a man could want.

And his wife? Patience Jonathan apparently hates that kind of snail pace to fortune. Indicted by the EFCC in only eight months as First Lady on a charge of laundering a few Naira bills, she moved to dollar bills in the millions the following month. That same month, the EFCC report to the Senate called her by name.

Again, this does not seem to matter in Nigeria: weeks later, in October, the Owu Kingdom, President Obasanjo's people, honored the Jonathans with chieftaincy titles. In that culture, Obasanjo is the Balogun of Owu; Mr. Jonathan became the Obateru.

If Mrs. Jonathan must was thrilled on that day, she must be over the moon today. An EFCC indictment, and yet she can get on any of our presidential jets at any time and drink champagne at State functions.

And how much taller she must be, these days as she stands on the authority of the vice-presidency! From such heights, not only do you dwarf an EFCC, are invisible. What a country!

What I really fail to understand is: If Mrs. Jonathan can so effectively laugh at the so-called war on corruption, does that not make her the First Lady? On what basis does she perform her functions – the recommendations of the EFCC? Why has Mrs. Jonathan assumed the status of untouchable, or is she truly the nation’s most powerful woman?

BY:Sonala Olumhense

Nsiman:
@ genbuhari, pls let us have buhari's family life: how many wife(ives), child(ren), concubine (if any) and dependants. A gerentologist can tell u better that @70, buhari will not perform as u think and u'll come here again to tell us that buhari's old age is not letting him be proactive on duty.

It may interest you to know that General Buhari has only one wife by the name Safinatu Yusuf whom he married in 1971 and they have four daughters.

MAYOWAAK:
Xtians are castigating Tunde Bakare that he is dragging the name of God in the mud by doing boy-boy for a Muslim president. I looked at the majority of people talking him down on this and found out that they themselves have muslim bosses, Muslim landlords, Muslim biz partners etc. What a hypocritical way of reasoning!

Joseph reported to Pharaoh o, Pharaoh was not a worshipper of Jehovah! Daniel reported to the King of Babylon, He was not a worshipper of Jehovah o!! As long as you are a shining example of Christ's standard, you are not unequally yoked with the unbeliever. Hypocrites are too much in the Pentecostal fellowship, too much head knowledge, but they try no challenge bigger than themselves!!

johndoe200:
Look at this fool, how did you know who their bosses and landlords are? Do you think we are fools? Please keep you juvenile nonsense to yourself.

I do not want to believe that you are visually challenged.Didn't you see the latin acronym etc which means I could go on and on with my examples and not limited to bosses and landlords only.

Your adult gibberish lacks ay iota of sense

johndoe200:
A I have no time for fake pastors, I got this from HIM HIMSELF.

He said that he intended to run for the chairmanship of Abeokuta Local Government area of his state. I am sure that he did. Since he was not declared the winner, I am sure he lost.

Your statement above has shown that you have a very crude knowledge of the English Language.When did expression of interest become synonymous with actually contesting?In addition your puerile and callow assumption has indeed buttressed the saying that assumption is the nadir point of knowledge.

johndoe200:
In your insanity you feel the need to insult anyone who does not believe what you do? It just goes to show that you lack home training (did you actually have a home?).

There is a saying in Yoruba which when literarily translated to English goes thus:It takes a thief to know the footsteps of another thief on a rocky ground.I am glad to inform you that we are in the same league

Bukittes:
Shallow Interview if u ask me. Pertinent questions weren't asked. Ifedayo, u r found wanting in your profession jare! Pastor turned VP Candidate, Should we begin to see blood in your regime and tell u that u will die in power? Lol! Na wah o! What has Light got to do with darkness? O gaaaa o! I repeat again, Pastor Bakare, don't ridicule your salvation o!!! The whole world is watching and Christians are on the edge on this issue! Don't soil your garments o!!!

If you have the pertinent questions for Bakare,can you please enumerate them?Talking about seeing blood and dying in power,I guess you are referring to Pastor Bakare's prophecies about OBJ which the media blew out of proportion.I suggest you get hold of the meesage titled NO MORE WALLS preached by Pastor Bakare on March 7 1999 where the prophecy was relayed and tell us where blood and dying in power were mentioned.

Xtians are castigating Tunde Bakare that he is dragging the name of God in the mud by doing boy-boy for a Muslim president. I looked at the majority of people talking him down on this and found out that they themselves have muslim bosses, Muslim landlords, Muslim biz partners etc. What a hypocritical way of reasoning!

Joseph reported to Pharaoh o, Pharaoh was not a worshipper of Jehovah! Daniel reported to the King of Babylon, He was not a worshipper of Jehovah o!! As long as you are a shining example of Christ's standard, you are not unequally yoked with the unbeliever. Hypocrites are too much in the Pentecostal fellowship, too much head knowledge, but they try no challenge bigger than themselves!!

Evano:
When did Pastor Bakare contest as LG Chairman

where is the medically certified liar by the moniker johndoe200 to answer the question?

johndoe200:
Bakare stood for LG chairman in his LGA and lost woefully, now you want him to be VP.

You not only a bare-faced liar but a disinformer who when is asked what time of the day is,the person asking for the time should look through the window as well.

When did Bakare contest for LGA election?

You are criticism to a dizzying absurdity heights.

[quote author=Ma_J_Blige link=topic=597763.msg7656397#msg7656397 date=1296684184]dumb[/quote]Can anything good come out of Ma_J_Blige except tirades?

FIVE REASONS WHY PASTOR BAKARE CAN BE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA IN 2011

1. It is constitutional: By Section 131 of the Nigerian constitution, a person shall be qualified for election to the office of President if:

(a) he is a citizen of Nigeria by birth;

(b) he has attained the age of forty years

(c) he is a member of a political party and is sponsored by that political party

(d) he has been educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent

By Section 142 (2), the above provisions shall also apply to the office of Vice President.

Pastor Bakare hails from Iporo-Shodeke, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. Therefore, he is a citizen of Nigeria by birth. he is 56 years old. The provision on membership of a political party is to prevent independent candidacy. Though until recently, he was not a member of any political party, he is running on the platform of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) which invited him and is sponsoring him in that sense. He is a trained lawyer and obtained his LLB at the University of Lagos and a BL at the Nigerian Law school. therefore, he is constitutionally qualified to run for the office of the Vice President/President.



2. It is moral. Morality simply relates to matters of right and wrong, personal conscience and standard of justice. In a nation characterized by injustice, where 1% of the population controls 80% of the wealth not because of hard work but due to corruption and inequity; where 25% of the nation's budget is consumed by about 600 persons who are supposed to be representatives of the people; in a nation where 70% of the populace live below the poverty line and 1 out of every 5 children dies before the age of 5 due to undernourishment, poverty and health infrastructural decay; where about 11 million children can not go to school because they can't afford it; where youths in their millions are jobless after spending 5-8 years studying for 4 years courses in poorly equipped academic environments; in a nation whose streets are lined up with children and teenagers hawking (I can tell you because I've been there) or begging and thereby exposed to all forms of danger because their parents or guardians are poor and need the extra income for survival or sometimes merely as a result of disrespect for child rights; in a nation which accounts for 1 out of every 9 maternal deaths in the world; in summary, in a nation that has deviated from the dreams of the founding fathers and has left millions hopeless and helpless simply because leadership has failed and the wicked have their grips on power whether they are in office or not either directly or through their stooges, it is outrightly immoral and an unpardonable indictment on anyone who has the characteristics of good leadership, the qualities of faithful stewardship and the skill and competence needed to change the situation, to merely stay on the sidelines and voice change without actively stepping into the terrain to create that change.



3. It is timely and expedient: In a nation divided by ethnic and religious sentiments, engulfed with violence that has religion either as a motivation or a colouration, where innocent men and women, boys and girls are constantly massacred, sometimes in their hundreds because leadership has failed to bridge the gap and truly unite the nation, it is absolutely expedient that one who understands the agitations of both faiths steps into leadership to bridge that gap just like Barrack Obama was expedient for a nation whose fabrics were threatened by race and religion due to the politics of extreme conservatism. If you were a resident of Jos Plateau, and have seen people including your relatives butchered in cold blood, and the leadership up till now has failed to address the situation, and one who has a plan and the stature to do so offers himself for leadership, would you give thought to petty sentimental issues, won't you embrace him as a life line? Those who say that it is not time, that the atmosphere needs to be cleansed first before a righteous man like him can step in have missed it all. Who will do the cleaning, the unclean?



4. The alliance is strategic: General Muhammadu Buhari is known for his anti-corruption antecedents. More so, he has the capacity to look boldly at the so called god-fathers of Nigerian politics, the bastions of corruption in the eye and bring them to the cleaners. He is what Nigeria need s now to pave the way for a generation of credible leaders. But he has been erroneously conceived as anti-Christian and extremely pro-Islam. His choice of a pastor, not just any pastor who can be intimidated or tossed about, but one whose boldness and fearlessness is contested by none who can look a leader in the face to bring correction is clear proof that Buhari does not have an Islamic agenda. The anti-corruption stance and integrity of both persons is what Nigeria needs to rebuild a righteous foundation.



5. It is Spiritual: From Genesis to Revelation, I have not seen where it is written that a pastor can not hold public office. Indeed, Buhari's choice of Pastor Bakare is reminiscent of Pharaoh's choice of Joseph, Nebuchadnezzar's choice of Daniel and Artaxerxes' choice of Mordecai. Remember that Daniel, like Pastor Bakare, was prophetic and he served as prime minister in Babylon (which is symbolic of the world's system) and Joseph, also prophetic, served as prime-minister in Egypt (which is symbolic of the world). We know by Colossians 1:16 that those offices were created by God and by Daniel 4:17 we understand that God gave them to these people because He willed to do so. Should we question the fact that God chose to give them to His own children? Spiritual matters are for those who have access to the Spirit. Let everyone who indeed has access to the Spirit not make biased or prejudicial conclusions. Let them not make comparisons based on human permutations or calculations. Let them not even compare Pastor Bakare's candidacy to that of any other person. Let them view this in its own merit. Let them go to God ask Him what he thinks. It is interesting that none of those who question this step has come to say that God told him/her that Pastor Bakare should not take it. If you are truly spiritual, go to God with an unbiased mind and hear what He has to say. Mind you, don't speak through the Spirit. Let Him speak to you. Only then will you be right to tell us what you have heard with your ears and have seen with your eyes and have looked upon and your hand have handled of the Word of life (John 1:1).

Olaisrich:
I am not in anyway against the decision of Pst TB to run for a political office, but as a xtian and a pastor for that matter, what will happen to his church? will he still have a full attention for the cause of Christ?

The church should not be a place where one person has been elevated to  a staus of superstardom,where that person is not around,everything ceases to function.

I  believe Bakare has capable hands to that can run the affairs of his church,if he is not available and in what way does the vice presidency stop him from advancing the cause of the Gospel?I am of the opinion that the Gospel will even be better propagated by his actions and deeds.

violent:
I think your assumptions and expectations are far too stretched in this case.  

Most Christians, using myself and many of my friends as appropriate case study, have an unwritten understanding that politics and Christianity should never mix. I believe this opinion is shared by many others, and can be well inferred from Chris Okotie's case studies.

Who told u that religion and politics don't mix? Where did u get that? I'm sure u couldn't see where the bible says that if leadership is left for the wicked, there is bound to be groanings in the society but when the righteous are in power,the citizenry rejoices

Former military dictator and failed PDP presidential candidate, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida,is sweating over the mass unrest that has hit Egypt, where he has some of his most prized investments.

SaharaReporters sources has learnt that apart from France, Germany and Nigeria, some of Babangida's most prized commercial real estate investments accruing from years of looting the Nigerian treasury are located in Egypt, especially in Alexandria. Alexandria is one of the cities currently hit by the mass unrest that could lead to the overthrow of the 30-year old Egyptian regime headed of Hosni Mubarak.

Mubarak is one of Babangida's closest allies, a relationship that started from his days as military dictator. Last year, Babangida rushed his mother-in-law, Hajiya King, to Egypt for treatment when she was in bad health. She died there in November 2010. Some reports also said that Egypt was one of the countries that his late wife, the former First Lady Maryam Babangida, spent several months as she sought treatment for cancer.

If the revolution succeeds results in Mubarak being forced out of office, Babangida stands to lose his prized choice properties and several investments believed to be held in trust for him by Mubarak and his family.

Babangida recently saw his dreams of of running for the presidency on the platform of the PDP crash crash even before the primaries as Northern leaders chose Atiku Abubakar instead.

According to Guardian nespaper of today(20th jan 2011) on page 4,Pastor Tunde Bakare of the Save Nigeria Group(SNG) and Latter Rain Assembly may have been picked as the Vice presidential aspirant to General Buhari who is contesting as the flagbearer of Congress for Progressive Change.The announcement would have been made Yesternight if not for the hesitation of Bakare who does not want to be misconstrued as using the SNG to feather his personal ambitions.

Today it is Tunisia, last weekend it was Southern Sudan. When will Nigerian oppressed class start their own people-engineered REVOLUTION? When? Instead of running overseas to enjoy what other people of those countries suffered to entrench in their countries, Nigerians in diaspora and home should brace up to start a revolution and chase most all those faces I saw at Eagles square on 13 January 2011 away to exile.
When will your suffering end Nigerians? When will you have real independence and not flag independence? Nigerians: why do you hate yourselves like this?

jason123:
Osun state 1 vote for atiku chei

gj= 99

This reminds of the fictional  Nigeria vs India match

MAYOWAAK:
Jonathan has the lead in Lagos

52 FOR JONATHAN AND 3 FOR ATIKU

Jonathan has the lead in Lagos