Odunnu:

I love his smile.

Nne Imaka

Ara da ra adà a dà gó,nke kwu otò ka ga ada kwa!!!

Isi adighi gi mma

Have you forgotten that he got into office by providence and hence we are in no position whatsoever to question his policies, his economics, and his leadership abilities generally?

You have committed sacrillege for questioning the abilities of God's annointed.

You know where a Nation is headed when people think like this? Full blown dictatorship.

This man looks like a journalist to me.

egift:

GEJ Team have been reduced to a campaign of lies and distraction - just anything that will not include the facts on ground and how to fix things.

exactly!!! the man said he will reconsider his position if pdp does not implement zoning.

the last time i checked pdp has not announced its candidate yet.

Jonathan and co will rather speculate about others than tell us their program for change.

like it or not

Atiku is the only one talking about economics here.

Some people lock there heads and ears and are ready to sheepishly follow Jonathan as he drives the Nation into a ditch.

The above quote is an admission of zoning.

It is also a curious admission of affirmative action. Thank God Nigeria does not do nuclear codes, this man is capable of exposing our nuclear codes through his gaffes; if we have one.

You can kill yourself because of it if you like.

Who says a man who lost an election can not aspire higher or have a say in the future of politics?

A lot of you have a very timid and backward mentality.

Go and read the history of Abraham Lincoln and Barack Obama they once lost elections in their histories but kept on going until they became President just because they believe in service.

If you loose an election you pick your self up, dust yourself and move on. Not least Nigerian elections that are most times not determined by the candidates's popularity but by skewed priorities of whoever sits in Aso Rock. There are a lot of contributing factors to why soludo lost.

Aso Rock's stop Soludo agenda
PDP bad record in Anambra
Ojukwu
Incumbent Governor who deployed state media and state officials for his own re-election.

So make no mistake, Soludo is still very much a darling in the hearts of Ndigbo.

2011: I’ll Never Succumb To Blackmail - Atiku


Mon Dec, 06 2010







Former Vice President and presidential aspirant of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar acknowledging cheers from his supporters on his arrival from the United Kingdom at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, this morning.



Former Vice President presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has said no amount of blackmail and ill-motivated allegations by his opponents can deter him from contesting the PDP presidential primaries against incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan.

Atiku, who returned to Abuja early this morning from London, told reporters at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, that he is fully ready for the primaries and confident of the outcome.

He noted that the current smear campaigns are intended to deter and distract him on his mission to tackle the challenges of weak infrastructure, collapsed industries, unemployment, poverty and hunger.

Reacting to the re-worked allegations of sleaze against him, the PDP presidential aspirant maintained that he is ready for anybody wanting to investigate him.

He said if he could survive the most intensive and ferocious allegations in the past under the most vindictive President, he couldn’t be perturbed this time around when his political opponents are trying the same dirty tricks. He said he is the most investigated politician and he came out clean.

The former Vice President said he is ready for the EFCC and that if their past efforts to bring him down didn’t succeed, criminal wrong doing would not be found against him this time.

According to him, the timing of the current smear campaign suggests that his opponents are scared of his competence and the quality of his programmes to tackle the basic challenges facing Nigeria such as deficient infrastructure, unemployment, hunger, declining quality of education and other social crises.

http://www.thetimesofnigeria.com/Article.aspx?id=3015

appletango:

he should but he's been bullied into this by obj who is petrified about what will happen to him when the north take over.

Believe it or not, not a lot will happen to OBJ. Not even Atiku will do jack to OBJ, IBB won't even try.

All this is all about is insatiable quest for power and pure greed. What some describe as the failures and imperfection of mortals. Nothing else.

The trouble is in the Nigerian context it is being done excess even at the risk of destroying the Nation itself.

Jonathan simply does not have the maths under a free for all contest.

He should protect the intrest of the Ijaw Nation and the South South by stepping down now and endorsing zoning.

With these numbers no Ijaw man will emerge President in the next 100years in a free for all contest.

But under the PDP zoning and power sharing the South South has produced President, Vice President, CDS, CAS, IG of Police, Deputy Speaker, Foreign Minister, Petroleum Minister, Justices to the Supreme Court. etc.

Jonathan should not betray the interest of ethnic minorities in Nigeria because of his winner takes it all attitudes.

He should consider his ambition carefully. A word is enough for the wise.
Because based on the numbers Atiku is headed for a landslide and this is the simple reason the only card left for the Jonathan/Sambo team is to keep attacking the concensus arrangement and hope that it fails.

It is clear that the Goodluck Jonathan camp are scared and worried about the concensus

and they are not even disguising their worry

this is simply why they have nothing else to talk about other than the failure of the concensus agreement.

ilugunboy:

McKren.

So 've got to be an SS person to support GEJ because it favours me to do so as my Brother?.

Let me bust your bubble, am not!!.

Just because the idea of Zoning will supposedly position a person from your ethnic stock for Aso Rock in 2015 is all this your love for zoning all about - simple and stop making it to look like is the next best thing after the invention of slice-bread.

Right, what is wrong if that is the case?

That was always the idea of zoning, so that everybody know when to take their tun.


so whats wrong if I am preparing to take my turn? Or you think by making noise I will chnage my mind?

Sorry that will not happen and if anything if during the PDP primaries you make a lot of noise about these I trust all the Hausa \and Igbo delegates to protect the interest of their own tribe and then in a situation like that there can be only one outcome.

so if I were you I will not make so much noise about 2015, if anything it is giving amunition to your opponents.

BEAF NEVER COMMENTS ON THREADS LIKE THESE

HE DOES NOT LIKE TO SEE VIDEO OF HIS OGA

THE MAN IS TOO HORRIBLE THAT HE MAKES EVEN HIS FANS CRINGE

Besides that after election, if a post election violence occurs in any part of the country because various ethnic groups were fighting to win the elections, Igbos are usually the easy target because we have more people scattered in all parts of Nigeria.

Zoning is not perfect but it is effective to ensure peace after elections in Nigeria.

That post election peace in Nigeria can not be taken for granted and not even Jonathan Goodluck's ambition is more important than the security of this country.

Let him run, he will surely loose at the PDP Primaries.

It is that simple.

ilugunboy

Once upon a time, Ndigbo used to be the ones who stood up against the North. You guys in the South South were celebrating your ability to undermine your neighbours and form cladenstine alliances with the Northerners.

You used to call Igbos arrogant and told us how your abilities to form partnership with the North in which most often than not you were always holding the wrong end of the bargain.

Now by a special grace of God we have a zoning policy that has made it possible for an Ijaw man to be the President of Nigeria and an Idoma man to be the Senate President and yet you want to jettission such a policy. Some of you have forgotten where you come from, you think Jonathan will be in office forever.

Without a zoning policy, Ijaw will not smell number 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 in National politics and it will take at least 100years for this country to produce an Ijaw President. So be careful what you wish for. Before you abuse Igbos and Northerners remember that democracy is a game of numbers and the last time I checked I don't know anybody who win elections by making ethnophobic and tribal slurs.


If I was an Ijaw man right now I will be advising Jonathan to honour the PDP zoning because that is the only way to guarantee that we keep having opportunities at the Fedral level because of the FG power sharing formula.

So ilunguboy go and chill, Ndigbo know what they want and if we were going to risk our political future it will not be for those who clearly once betrayed us.

If Jonathan Goodluck was Ibibio or Efik then the noise you are making will make sense. But the Ijaws have a history of betraying the Igbos and it will be politically risky for Igbos to jettissiona zoning formula in the PDP that gives all Nigerians opportunity just to favour Jonathan over the North.

That is political sucide and any igbo proposing that needs their head examining!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ilugunboy:

McKren wrote:


Dude you are damn desperate to get an Igbo man in there come 2015 with the most silliest strategy ever know in the books of politics - trying to make a politician honour his words when there is no constitutional limitation on him to do so! pathethic reasoning of the highest order. Am really afraid for the Igbo nation if your type is what they are breeding to take over the political space, it simply means tthe North will always easily use your naivety in politics to hold on to power perpertually.

It is not down to you to lecture me on Ndigbo on politics ok? When your people were busy going about telling all who cared to know that the Northerners were you allies, where were you. I thought the South South and the North have always been allies?

what went wrong this time? oh you are no longer allies because you find it too difficult to have Jonathan shoved to one side.

Sorry it is too late. Get ready to have a taste of your own dose.

Jonathan will be shoved to one side in 2011. The PDP zoning fromula was crafted by Ekwueme and Hausas. We are going to keep honouring it. We own the party; Jonathan does not and the party will not throw away what keeps it in power because of Jonathan. Jonathan got to where he is today because of zoning. If he wants to run in 2011 elections he should start forming a new party because he will never get PDP ticket.

It is not up to you to lecture Ndigbo or the IgboNation what is good for them OK? we know how Nigerian politics works, we are big players in the game and we know what is good for us ok? Jonathan is a nobody, he should enjoy the much favour he has recieved from the party and go back home.

PDP will defend its zoning policy and we have better candidates to present.

Faeb:

I am sure everyone knows GEJ's programmes. Who hasn't heard of the detailed and actioned plan to solve Nigeria's electricity problems? Who hasn't heard about the opening up of the petroleum industry, so that the average Nigerian can participate, rather than watch in the sidelines as the FG in turn watches foreign companies making away with our oil? Who hasn't heard of the various strategies to energise and empower the private sector?

Jonathans plans have got Nigeria and the World excited.
At this time, we should be arguing about details, not asking the obvious. Where have you been?

. . .Anyways, IBB is running, what are his programmes?

What are the various strategies Jonathan has proposed to stimulate the private sector?

Provide us videos of Jonathan talking about his programmes or defending his records. Not links to sites where experts are asked to go and dump 10 point plans. If the President is not talking about these plans himself, hee is either not aware of them or he does not believe in them.

BTW you guys should stop wishing that a man who has stepped down from the race is still running. You are living in the past.

When the time comes the very PDP constitution stopping Jonathan and making his Presidential run immoral; will make Atiku going for a second term also immoral and the owners of PDP will also rise up to defend the PDP zoning formula.

So no need to be paranoid.

When we get there we will cross the bridge.

Instead of Jonathan camp telling Nigerians about their programmes, they are busy talking about concensus forgeting that all news whether good or bad helps keeps Atiku in the news and attracts momentum to him.

This seems to be the only strategy team Jonathan has.

To attack the concensus, they are suprised it worked.

When will they start telling us about their programmes?

Fake news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

IBB is fully in camp Atiku

A new phrase will be added to our political dictionary "The Jonathan Effect" . . .inspired by the Bradley effect.

Where you are front runner for so long only for those who claimed they will vote for u to go to the polling boot to vote your opponent.

The EFCC is a pure joke!!!!!!!!!!

Eziachi:

So you do have multiple identity here?
That is another angle to corruption. Corruption is not all about Naira and kobo but attitude, behaviour and conduct in one's life.

The fellow called Beaf has no shame at all. I have been monitoring his post. What a classless character. he is a low life.

Can Jonathan stop Atiku?

Politics Dec 4, 2010
Atiku and Jonathan
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar is perhaps having the best moment of his political career. When the Northern Political Leaders Forum (NPFL), announced him as its consensus candidate for the PDP presidential primary election, Atiku, who was in political wilderness at the beginning of the year, became the issue in Nigeria’s politics.

Atiku returned to PDP against hurdles placed by his former boss, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Governor Murtala Nyako of his home state of Adamawa and, most probably, the Presidency that worked from the background. While Nyako resisted Atiku’s return at the state level, Atiku secured registration at the ward level.

And, whereas Nyako depended on might of state power, Atiku exploited a clear understanding of the constitution and workings of the PDP to work his way back into the party.

His next battle was for a waiver. Obasanjo, as the “founder and leader of modern Nigeria”, had posed the hurdle of waiver before all new members of the party. They require a waiver to contest election if they have not spent two years in the party. Atiku was face-to-face with Jonathan who is scheming for the same office he wants.

The story is yet to be told of how Atiku secured the waiver, but getting the waiver only confirms that Atiku understands PDP and has leveraged on his political sagacity to win his battles within the party. Many analysts of Atiku’s waiver battle had predicted that he would be granted the waiver when it will be too late for him to campaign for the primary.

If that was the design of his opponents, then we should be looking at the hand of fate in Atiku’s candidacy. He got the waiver few weeks to the scheduled primary but before analysts could explain how he did it, INEC requested a three-month postponement for the election.

The impact of the three months extension is evident in the landscape. An opinion poll recently revealed that Atiku enjoys support of 65 per cent of known delegates in the PDP.

Atiku’s appeal to the delegates probably lies on three grounds. Unlike Jonathan, who is new on the scene, Atiku had played on the national political scene for almost 23 years after he started out with the late General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua to establish the Peoples Front, a political organisation that stormed the political landscape in the 1980s.

As a founding member of PDP, he has made more contributions to the party than Jonathan and party leaders at the grassroots are likely to remember this while deciding on whom to support.

This appeal to party members is strengthened by his contributions to democracy. Even Atiku’s greatest critics credit him with making his impact in deepening democracy in the country.

He worked with others to frustrate Obasanjo’s plot to elongate his tenure from two terms to life presidency when Jonathan was visibly and financially supporting the onslaught against democracy. In many of his legal battles, Atiku set precedent for internal democracy within political parties and set precedent against the arbitrary use of state institutions like EFCC to deny citizens their rights to stand for election.

Atiku’s hand has been strengthened by his announcement as the consensus candidate by the NPLF. Given the extensive consultations by the Adamu Ciroma committee among traditional rulers, religious leaders, state governors, senators and civil society groups across the North, Atiku’s candidacy will surely enjoy a groundswell of support that the buy-in of these groups will bring. Equally important will be the instinct of PDP stalwarts to defend their chances in the election by supporting a northern candidate.

A Jonathan candidacy will switch northern support for General Buhari and his Congress for Progressive Nigeria (CPC) and that will be too risky for all contestants running on PDP platform. Only a northern presidential candidate will checkmate this. Besides, it is yet to be seen how the combination of Atiku, Babangida, General Aliyu Gusau, Bukola Saraki, Adamu Ciroma, the northern traditional institutions, etc. will be defeated by Jonathan in the north.

In the South, the South-East will be a major battle field. Jonathan has been endorsed several times over by the governors in the zone. The serial endorsement is beginning to look suspicious. The zone will be four years away from the presidency with Atiku as president. They will wait another 16 years if Jonathan wins, by which time none of the major players in the scene will enjoy the visibility to contest.

The chances that the delegates from the South-East will ignore this implication are indeed very rare. The calibre of politicians jostling to be running mate to Atiku from the zone is perhaps the greatest indication of how seriously the zone regards Atiku’s candidacy.

The PDP in the south-west has been thrown into turmoil with the recent loss of Ekiti and Osun States. The party elders in the zone have openly blamed Jonathan for their fate. Even if the south west supports Jonathan, its pool of delegates has been seriously depleted by loss of local councils dissolved by the new AC governors, and the spate of decamping that has been recorded in the states.

The implication of all these is that the south west may not offer Jonathan the quantum of votes he expects to counter the massive votes the consensus candidate is likely to secure in the north.

It is logical to concede that the South-South is the surest zone for Jonathan but, even then, his battle with his state governor, his wife’s open brawl with Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, the confrontation of his godfather, Chief Edwin Clark, with the group that controls the political structure in Delta State as well as the anger in Akwa Ibom State over his transfer of 23 oil wells from Akwa Ibom to his home state, Bayelsa, are enough grounds to suspect that he may not have the bloc votes that many analysts have taken for granted from the zone.

Finally, Atiku has maintained a focused campaign disclosing what he will do if elected president. Jonathan’s campaign has only provided entertainment with new dance steps. So, for delegates who are bothered about PDP’s rating among Nigerians, Atiku offers the hope that the party will be restored to a beacon of hope for the citizens.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/can-jonathan-stop-atiku/

Hope is on the horizon.

Atiku is credited for putting together OBJ's economic team. He will do it again as Commander-in-Chief

These numbers are not dependable!!!!
It is one thing to speculate on a Governor's support, it is quite another to actually win the delegates from their states

Anybody who believes that Jonathan will win more delegates than Atiku in Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, Kano, Kebbi will believe anything. So the speculations about 5 Governors from the NorthWest while I don't believe that this is actually the true picture, I do also know that this will not count for much. The same is also the case for North East and North Central.

in SouthEast only Abia can be said to be in Jonathan's pocket. The rest will change positions when the dance changes.

SouthWest is free for all. Atiku has strong ties in the SouthWest and can make serious inroads to stop a block vote for Jonathan. Only Ogun and Oyo can be said to be in Jonathan's pocket. The rest belong to anybody.

Jonathan can only get block vote in South South not because they believe he is a great leader; they just wont be able to resist the temptation of following sentiments.

In all I see Jonathan controlling only about 15 states in the election.

All this people declaring support for Jonathan will at the last minute jump ship for a simple reason. The President is dumb and not brilliant enough to lead this country. It is one thing to fulfil a constitutional requirement; it is quite another to elect a President.

The torchlight of SouthEast Politics is being passed from Ekwueme to Soludo.

Soludo is an A Class Professor and not some joke. He understands the History of Nigeria and will work vigorously with Atiku if selected to change the course of Nigeria's history. We need leaders who understand what leadership is all about.

We need to industrialise Nigeria and that will not be achieved by  a President who at best is reactionary.

With Soludo on the ticket, a good policy towards social engineering will be designed and Atiku will deploy his political skills and clout to get these legislation passed. While Soludo is at it he will be a loyal understudy to Atiku in terms of Politics.

And then the future of all Nigerians no matter the language you speak, or the God you pray to will be secured.

Let us take our destiny in our hands.

Jonathan Goodluck will be a waste of time for another 4years.

It is time to break free from our history of unwilling leaders.

Atiku is not an unwilling leader and God knows Prof. CC Soludo is a natural leader.

It is time a leadership with the capacity to inspire Nigerians around a common agenda. No need for behind the scene Presidents or those who hide behind Facebook.
We live in digital age when real leaders lead from the front.

[size=18pt]Atiku in secret meeting with Soludo in London[/size]

News Dec 4, 2010 By Chioma Gabriel
The Consensus Candidate of the Northern Political Leaders Forum and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has taken his presidential campaign to United Kingdom where he also had a secret meeting with the former Central Bank Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo before jetting off to Swtizerland in his bid to consolidate his campaign structures and ensure he emerges the presidential candidate of PDP in the January primaries of the party.

Saturday Vanguard was reliably informed that Atiku met the former Central Bank Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo in the UK and stayed with him for two days . Both men were said to have traveled out over the weekend for a secret meeting with other stakeholders in diaspora.

Our source said they also used the opportunity of their meeting to strategise on the coming PDP primaries and how to enhance Atiku’s stronghold in the South East to heighten his chances of defeating president Jonathan in PDP primaries. Saturday Vanguard learnt that the meeting might have afforded the two the chance to discuss Soludo’s likelihood of emerging the presidential running mate to Atiku in the unfolding scenario of the search for a running mate for Atiku from the South East. .

The consensus Northern candidate is also said to have used the opportunity to meet other Nigerians in diaspora and discuss the modalities of the 2011 elections and how to ensure the ruling PDP remains the party to beat during the coming elections.

Atiku is said to have left UK for Switzerland Thursday to continue negotiations and consultations with other Nigerians in diaspora. He is expected to return to Nigeria this weekend to continue consolidating in the geo political zones.

Atiku Abubakar is, for now, the most formidable opponent of President Goodluck Jonathan in the primaries, after emerging as the North’s consensus candidate.

Saturday Vanguard gathered that while the decision on the running mate is likely to be a joint one with General Ibrahim Babangida, General Aliyu Gusau and Dr. Bukola Saraki all of who fought the consensus mandate with him, he has started compiling names of “sellable” politicians from the South-East in which former CBN Governor , Chukwuma Soludo seems to be a favourite. Others penciled down for consideration are former Senate President, Chief Ken Nnamani, ex-Minister of Information, Chief Emeka Chikelu and a former member of the House of Representatives, Nze Chidi Duru.

The South East , according to information available to Saturday Vanguard is currently sharply divided over who to support in the primaries between President Jonathan and Atiku with the major Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, throwing its weight behind the President .

The choice of an Igbo running mate for Atiku would believably neutralise Jonathan’s support base in the South East but some Igbo leaders don’t see any cause for that as Jonathan is not perceived as a threat to Atiku in the South East, because, according a Saturday Vanguard source, “ not all Igbos share the Ohanaeze position in supporting Jonathan. We are of Igbo Political Leaders Forum and we have the likes of Ekwueme amongst us with whom the Northern Political Leaders Forum signed a pact that come 2015, Presidency must go to the South East. Forget what Ohanaeze is saying because for now, the organisation has no leadership. Uwechue’s tenure has expired recently and everybody is speaking differently.

“The Deputy President of Ohanaeze, Elechi Onyia is not in support of Jonathan but the Northern consensus candidate and one of the conditions for this support is an Igbo President in 2015 and Vice President in 2011. One thing that is very clear is that both Jonathan and Atiku are struggling for the soul of the South East and whoever among these four that Atiku chooses as a running mate would make or mar his chances in the January PDP primaries,” the source said


http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/atiku-in-secret-meeting-with-soludo-in-london/

You can believe whatever makes you feel good but IBB has said himself on TV that his current priority is to help Atiku win PDP primaries.

9ijaMan:

For all those clamouring for Soludo to become VP to Atiku, I guess this knok him out of the equation.

Nope it does not. Anybody can be accused. If thats the standard Atiku nor Jonathan have no business running. In fact nobody does.

No court has convicted Soludo of anything.

@Mens_dept

  Giving the slot of Vice to an Igbo wont solve the neglect you find in the SE/SS. Have Igbo people turned so gullible and cowardly that the offer of 2nd is equated with victory?

Every election since 1999, those from the SE have had no vision whatsoever to promote the well-being of their people (and Naija at large).

Instead, it is "Wait till 2003, wait for 2007, wait for 2011, wait for 2015", and so on and so forth. At that rate an Ghanian will become president of Naija before an Igbo person.

The governors (including the already confused Orji) are confused, Ohaneze confused for a record 4th election, Igbo senators/reps confused, and you wonder why finalizing projects in the East (aka Int'l Airport, roads, bridges) take forever, and why Northerners and Yorubas like to promise comical items to Easterners.

Easterners, organize among yourselves for this election, and hold your leaders accountable

Telling us how cowardly Jonathan was when he ran as VP to Jonathan will be a good start.

Some of us were not born today.

Its time for the Governors to stop the dilly dallying and turn full circle and face Atiku for the simply reason that Jonathan has shown in the last 10 months that he is simply not up to the job.