₦airaland Forum

Alhaji Buba Galadima wasNational Secretary of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), formed in the run-up to the 2011 general elections as a platform for President Muhammadu Buhari. He was an ally of Buhari before they fell apart. Last week, Galadima and others formed what many perceived as the Third Force that would counter things in the current political dispensation. In this interview, he answers questions on the new body and what his group is set to achieve.

You were part of a group that recently formed a Third Force. What are you set to achieve?

I want you members of the Press to differentiate between two things: One of them is the movement we launched recently. It is not the Third Force. It is a movement established to bring patriotic Nigerians together in order to fight for good governance, independence of the judiciary, good Electoral Act and a host of other things. It could have members of government; members of other political parties and even the Press can be members of this national movement. But we are also thinking of floating a Third Force political party and when we do that, we will bring five million people to Abuja for the world to see. So there is a difference between the two.

Are you saying it’s a movement now but you also want to make it a political party in future?

This is a movement and it will continue in future. I am the National Chairman of the Reformed All Progressives Congress, RAPC; Senator Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso is a member of the PDP as we speak, Senator Hamza is a member of the Accord Party, Alkali is a member of the APC, Tanko Yakassai, Muhammadu Ali-Gwaska are party-less but they are coming out of their trenches at the age of 96 and 88 years, to partake in galvanizing Nigerians to fight for good governance; galvanizing good people to populate the political space. So, it is not a platform for party politics but the important thing to note is that all these noble ideas cannot be achieved without a political platform because you can only address these issues when you are in government and you cannot get into government without a political platform. So, eventually, those of us who are politicians will form the so-called Third Force that you are looking for or we may even have formed the Third Force but not rolled out for the public.

Are you still a member of the APC?

I am the Reformed All Progressives Congress, RAPC, National Chairman.

What informed the formation of the national movement? In other words, what is not right about the system that you want to correct?

What is not right is what some people feel in Nigeria of today. If they feel they are secure, so be it. If they feel that the system puts food on their table without stress, so be it. If they believe that they can go to any government hospital and get treatment that they can get in other parts of the world, let it be. If they feel that the dollar should be exchanged at N1, 000, let it be. If they think that they don’t have to take their children to private schools, that government schools are good, so be it, that is democracy but we believe that all the things I enumerated are negative and ought to be addressed.

We have had similar movements from different quarters in the past but they never succeeded. One of them is the National Elders Forum; it was made up of elderly elites but they never made any difference, and nobody listened to them…

You know that those are not political platforms. I thought you were asking me of the Third Force, why we contemplated the Third Force; what is it that is wrong today that we want to rectify? So, it has nothing to do with this national movement. The national movement is only to galvanize people at least to act in making Nigeria better, making our electoral system better, making the government to sit up and live up to its responsibilities, to address security, economy etc.

We have so many political issues though your movement is not a political party. You said you are the National Chairman of Reformed APC, when did you form that and has it been registered?

Doesn’t the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria allow free assembly and free speech and formation of bodies? But you cannot run for political office without being registered by INEC. We are not registered with INEC but we can assemble and form bodies and we can have leadership.

Yes, but you cannot achieve anything if you are not registered

It’s not for you to say, it’s for Nigerians to say. This is your opinion. And you may be right or wrong in your opinion.

So, what do you intend to achieve with the RAPC? What is wrong with the APC?

I have already enumerated the things that are wrong. If you are satisfied with what they are doing and the way things are, so be it; that is your opinion, but we are not satisfied. That is why we want to bring an alternative,

APC is addressing itself. After so much dragging up and down, APC has been able to fix a date for their National Convention; what do you think of that?

Well, they fixed a date for their national consensus, not convention. The convention is only to bring them together to announce the names and shout Aye and they walk away and say the Ayes have it. APC is set to do everything by consensus and that is not democracy.

Do you think coming together to just announce the names of the chosen candidates will work?

I am making a prophecy. Have I ever made any prophecy since you began interviewing me that did not come to pass? This one will also happen as I have said but that is going to be the beginning of the end of the APC. I can tell you. APC will collapse under its own weight.

What is your view on power shift to the South?

Which one is power shift to the South? For how long have we been in this democracy? Since 1999 and by 2023, that will be 24 years. That means by 2023, we would have been in a democracy for 24 continuous years. In the 24 years, how many years did the North rule and how many years did the South rule? When Buhari finishes his term, the North would have ruled for nine and a half years out of the 24 years and the South would have ruled for 14 and a half years.

So, are you saying that you are not in support of power shifting to the South?

That is not what I am saying because I don’t believe in primordial things. What I believe is that the best man for the job should be voted for. It doesn’t matter whether he comes from Igbo, Hausa, Nupe, Tiv, Kanuri, Fulani, or Yoruba; we need a man with a large heart that will accommodate all Nigerians; a man with a vision that will take Nigeria to Olympian heights, a man with a pedigree of performance. We will ask those who want to be President, to tell us what they have done while they were in public office. It is no more a trial and error season because we have tried tribe, it didn’t work; we tried section, it didn’t work, so why don’t we try what we know?

Try what we know like?

Like performance. Let the man tell us what he has done while holding public office. That is what the media should be doing, not dividing us like zoning and using primordial sentiments. If Nigeria is good for us all, a dollar is equivalent to one naira, you can walk into the filling station and buy fuel, you can go to the market with N100 and buy what you can eat, what does it matter where the President comes from? After all, Buhari is from Katsina, have you asked the Katsina people whether they are happy with the way he is handling the country? If Ojukwu comes back and gives Katsina people security, wouldn’t you think they will vote for him? What is good for Nigeria now is not trial and error, we must look for somebody who has performed, who has a vision.

The parties are positioning themselves for 2023 elections and they are engulfed in internal crises. APC is dillydallying, PDP is also dillydallying about doing certain things they need to do like congresses before the election and then there’s the problem of signing the Electoral Act by the President. Someone from the Presidency said that the President will sign the Electoral Act in a matter of hours.

What he did not tell you is that he will sign it in a matter of hours but with a proviso which means he will sign the Electoral Act in a matter of hours and give you with one hand and take it away with another hand. He doesn’t want to be accused of refusing to sign, so he will sign but he will take amendments back to the National Assembly so that all the gains that were made would be reversed, so we are not yet out of the woods. He still has some reservations. The PDP and APC are not political parties; they would collapse under their own weight of injustice. Now the President is picking who is going to be the Chairman of the party, who is going to be the deputy and who is going to be the Secretary; is that what the Constitution of the APC says or the Constitution of Nigeria says that one man should give them who will lead the party?

They said consensus candidates and that is what seems to be playing out…

That is why I said they will collapse under their own weight of injustice. So, when we bring a Third Force, don’t you think that people like you will join? Even journalists could join.

There are many strong personalities from the South who are showing interest in contesting the 2023 presidential election…

Let them put on the table what they were able to do while in public office. You can’t sit in your home and think that they will bring Nigerian presidency and give you because you are from the South or you are from the North, you are Hausa, Igbo or Yoruba, you have to work for it. I want to say again that we have tried religion, it did not work, we tried tribe, it didn’t work, we tried section, it didn’t work, why don’t we try competence, vision and foresight?

With the way things are going, some people are saying that they may shift election dates. Do you believe that?

Let them put it on the table; we will deal with the situation when it comes. Let the person come and say it.

https://www-vanguardngr-com.cdn.ampproject.org/wp/s/www.vanguardngr.com/2022/02/the-galadima-bombshell-apc-pdp-will-collapse-under-weight-of-injustice/amp/?usqp=mq331AQKKAFQArABIIACAw%3D%3D

both the two parties are worthless and consumed alot of thieves. we need better than both of them

No one is even talking about the youths creating their own party, like seriously, we need a youth party, tired of all these selfish old men, it's how they keep going without relenting, they wanna rule even in their graves, awon agbaya oshi.

Ok

brother go and learn blogging like ur other mates.

Ok

It's obvious that both the PDP and APC are failures. Projecting a 90 year old Tinibu speaks volumes for the APC and l don't see the PDP doing better as they are most likely to feature Atiku
Same bunch of fleshed that cannot improve the lot of the populace

Eweeeeeey!

To all parties that do not have the growth and progress of Nigeria and Nigerians at heart, we hope they never smell power.

To the ones who already rubbished the nation, we pray they don't go unpunished either by God or man...

The best thing to do to kick these oldies out is to get our PVCs ready for elections next year, we can't be screaming year in year out without actively participating in the electioneering process..

Good looking out to all Nigerian youths, we only got ourselves

By the way, I'm available for your writing and design jobs, see my signature below, thanks

This Buba Galadima again?

The way ipob pigs were following him up and down during 2019 general elections, I thought he was a member of ipob "fighting for fleedom".

This same man said Buhari won't sign the electoral laws live on National TV...

Instead of apologising for misinforming us, he is giving us another lamba



.

The evil party will surely collapse

SweetSauce:
No one is even talking about the youths creating their own party, like seriously, we need a youth party, tired of all these selfish old men, it's how they keep going without relenting, they wanna rule even in their graves, awon agbaya oshi.

Change you seek begins with you... Drop your phone and head to the street where the real voters are


.

Mooh247:
Change you seek begins with you... Drop your phone and head to the street where the real voters are


.

Wetin make I go do for street? I'm talking about Youth creating their own political party, you telling me to head to the street, to do what kwanu?
Maybe you should head for the street first, then call me when you get there, I'll def show up, how about that?

This man never lose hin head yet?

Finished politician

The chronic third force convener and general has spoken again

Always in the news towards every election to look for people to form the 3rd force political party with...he should find something else to do, politics doesn't seem to favour him like that...him time don pass

"Loveurneighbour'', "Loveurneighbour", biko, does ur neighbor love u?
That neighbour that is continually reciprocating ur enduring love with hatred and bad will shdnt be d one to cry ''he hates me".

Me, I yaff fork my own, whoever has ears make e hear (if e want).

This guy is all hot air to me. He won't support power shift to the South, he won't close ranks with his party members to ensure credible people are put forward, he won't form a political party, 4 months to producing a candidate that will run in next year's elections etc etc. No need to waste any time listening to this guy.

SweetSauce:
No one is even talking about the youths creating their own party, like seriously, we need a youth party, tired of all these selfish old men, it's how they keep going without relenting, they wanna rule even in their graves, awon agbaya oshi.

I tire for Nigeria matter

You want chairmanship position because of salary not because of we ordinary citizens
U also want power remain in north
Affordable men clothing payment on delivery

Stop dragging PDP to same level with APC.
APC failed us.
Abeg APC Return our economy, our Naira exchange rate to its value during PDP era. I dey beg una

Clown

has galadima withdrawn his daughter from #asorock?or she still dey collect salary from buhari'no shame!

This Buba Galadima does not know where to stay. Confusionist without direction.