₦airaland Forum

MY CANDID ADVICE TO PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN.



Mr. President



We have never met despite the fact that we were all born and we lived for more than half a century in this great vast country Nigeria. It’s here we all grew up and were educated and I presume except by divine prudence it’s here that we will all be buried.



So what truly matters is the legacy that we will bequest our children and the next generation of Nigerians to come. We will not want it a burnt country with hundreds of thousands dead, maimed or displaced people because of the thoughtlessness and recklessness of its stewardship.



Nigeria today is a single railway line with two heavily loaded trains spending towards each other in opposite direction.



You’re the driver of the heavier train and please do not think that even a cart on the railway cannot derail you with great catastrophe to humanity.



You need to come out of the cocoon and face the reality. Denial of the truth can never solve problems.



Mr. President, from what I heard from people who are close to you, is that you are humble with a soft heart. But still humility is never enough for an effective leadership. Leadership is about listening and taking the good advices from people of wisdom not from those that benefit from you or have any agenda other than the unity and progress of this Nation.



The mantle of the leadership of this country was given to you under oath. Almost four years ago you swore to protect ‘the interest of the sovereignty, integrity, solidarity, well-being and prosperity of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’. You said: ‘ I will not allow my personal interest to influence my official conduct or my official decisions; and ‘I will do right to all manner of people, according to law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will’



Unfortunately, many people including me before God believe you broke some of your oath. I’ll only need to refer you back to the honest open letter advice you were given by your political godfather. You appear more Ijaw than Nigerian. It’s seldom fathers will deceive their children. Yet you never listen. And sadly by your recalcitrance you are dangerously leading this nation to chaos and turmoil that only God knows were it will end.



Muslims have officially registered to you on occasions your partiality. Northern groups have complained about your bias. The youth about your neglect.



You have divided the nation gravely on the religious divide. Already we heard a call in a church that you are now a saviour. Now, not of Nigeria but the church in Nigeria. With this religious zeal on both sides, each side looking at the wrong people for salvation the nation is heading towards disaster.



My fellow country man, it’s unfortunate that your stand on many issues have made you into a polarizing figure while the exalted office you occupy needs a nationalistic one. Surely with the Christian votes and northern PDP followers you can win another election but you will also set the nation into another turmoil because that segment of the nation that rejects you do so because they believe rightly or wrongly you are involved negatively in the Boko Haram Saga. The natural thing any good leader will do in this situation is to step down for a person all the segments of the nation will have confidence with for their well-being. A credible person that will not stir apprehension. The decision is not about your rights but about responsibility.



Therefore as you pray in the Holy Land seek for God’s indulgence to show you the light of honor and do the right thing. It’s God’s command that Nigeria stay united and ‘what therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder’.



A word of wisdom says: ‘He who consults is never disappointed and he who seeks God’s choice never regret’ so please don’t brush it aside call men of wisdom to advice you too.



I for a start, I am hereby candidly advising you to relinquish your presidential ambition because of peace, stability and well being of millions of innocent Nigerians. There are many politicians that can ‘finish’ it on your behalf. The PDP can present Akpabio or Obi or Orji etc.

I rest my case here.

Stay blessed.


Ahmad Gumi

Kaduna-based renowned Islamic cleric, Sheik Ahmed gumi, has called on a former Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari, not to contest the 2015 presidential election.
The cleric rather suggested that Mr. Buhari should back a younger person to run for the position.
In an open letter to the former head of state, posted on his Facebook page, Mr. gumi argued that age is not on the side of the retired general and that politicians were only using him to get to power because of his popularity among the masses.
He also said a Buhari presidency would further polarise the country and worsen the security challenges the country is grappling with.
“My brother in Islam, please listen to the words of wisdom,” Mr. gumi said. “And don’t follow the whims of the riffraff Before they used you the first time to disrupt the second republic, my father advised you against it. Today I am also advising you against contesting in the 2015 presidential election because you will be used to ignite the nation -a dream well orchestered several years ago- and also be used by bad people as a ladder to grab regional and local powers.”
When contacted by PREMIUM TIMES, Mr. gumi confirmed writing the letter. He said it was his own contribution to peace building in the country.
“I have to write him (Mr. Buhari) that letter because we don’t want crisis in Nigeria,” he said.
Mr. Buhari last week formally declared his intention to seek the APC presidential ticket at a well-attended rally in Abuja. The following day, he obtained the party’s nomination forms.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is also seeking the same ticket just as Kano state Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso.
Below is Mr. gumi’s full message to Mr. Buhari.
Assalamu Alaikum
The Humble People’s General.
I know I have access to you privately but this is meant for others to learn also.
The Prophet -peace be upon him- told one of the most honest and truthful of his companions, Abu Zar Algafary: “Oh Abu Zar, I truly love for you what I love for myself. I indeed see that you are weak so never accept to lead even two people and never accept safekeeping of the orphans wealth.”
An honest and candid advice from the prophet that is still valid today for any leader whose weakness borders on leadership qualities.
The reason for Abu Zar’s weakness has nothing to do with his credibility or truthfulness. Never! The prophet was narrated as saying: “there is nobody under the shadows of trees or bare sun that is more honest in speech than Abu Zar”.
Abu Zar – May Allah be pleased with him- is ascetic and inmaterialistic. Abu Zar is incorruptible. And yet he is not suitable for leadership.
I am not claiming to be even by an atom’s weight anything close to our noble prophet, yet I am encouraged to give you these same advice by the virtue that you are not also close to Abu Zar in piety. We are living in a time of great tribulations and fitnah especially for this Ummah because of our collective iniquities, ignorance of religious instructions and the love of Dunyah.
Sir, your weakness is not in your past impeccable record of accountability of public wealth and the fight against corruption and indiscipline. Your weakness is in your inability to control men compounded further by your strict and obsessive rejection of corruption.
Don’t be surprised. You may need to understand that Islam being a pragmatic religion allows the use of Zakkat and public wealth as an instrument to pacify and lure influential people for the sake of righteousness, peace and stability. In modern governance today it translate to security vote.
Thus men are also controlled by money. So if your policy of governance is obsessibly centered on sealing tight the use of money, you will have great problem with men. An Arab poet said: “A fool cannot be the leader of his people but the true leader of the people must feign foolishness”.
It’s convenient for your ardent supporters to quote copiously from the annals of history your great achievements but when your failures and weaknesses were pointed out they say that was in the past. Is the lessons of past history only good for the positive achievements? Doesn’t that also explains our incessant failures?
Your Excellency, good intentions are never enough. In the past, because of your clean records and straightforwardness you were lured by men who want only the vanities Dunya to uproot a young democracy on the caprices of fighting corruption. Corruption is no doubt an evil but there is a more monstrous evil than corruption. That is turmoil and insecurity. Peace and stability are the most important part of governance that no price is to high for them.
The lack of peace, stability and security is the major predicament of this nation since independence. So when you were naively used by men to derail one, that is the greatest disservice you committed to the nation the ills of which we are yet to recover from.
Do you truly believe Allah is still not in cognizance of that? You were led to uproot a duly elected leader and incarcerate him for close to two years knowing fully well that he has no charge of even the corruption that was labeled against him. Yes, Shagari was the leader and therefore he bears all the responsibility of misdeeds in his government, so also you were a leader and you should bear all the responsibility of derailing the peace and stability of governance in this country as a consequence of that putsch.
Your weakness in control of men became evident when the very people that used you to revolt against a constituted authority came back to uproot you from the seat of power. Your own kinsmen. Without a gun cocked in your defence.
Today the corruption you were deceived to fight against has reached unimaginable level coupled with the worst state of insecurity and peace in the nation. There was just recently an attempt on your life like many of us.
All this because you the honest people that are given the privilege of strengthening the Armed forces left it to meddle in politics. We thus lost everything. Neither the power nor the security.
A believer is not stung from the same hole twice. Men used your innocence before to get power and dump you. Please be sensible today. Some other men still want to use you to get power and surely they will dump you again. You don’t share the same philosophy at all. Even though as I explained later, your obsession and philosophy of fighting corruption is not the priority of Nigeria today. What Nigeria needs utmost now is peace and stability? This can only be achieved when the religious ethnic and regional divide is tamed. And you can only tame it with people without much precedence. People without much following. Yet people that are constructive and have the ability to control men.
If Sardauna today is alive in your situation he will never contest for the presidential seat because of his deep understanding of what the nation needs. He will step down for a more acceptable younger person. It’s on record that Sardauna even at the age of under 60 said he was not going to contest again, preparing his only house in Rabah for retirement.
I’ll give you a similitude to buttress my point of priority. A person seriously injured and fractured from a road traffic accident when brought to the emergency room, the first priority of the doctors is to secure an intravenous line. Meaning get a drip set working into his veins to protect his vital organs like the heart and kidneys from the effects of shock and loss of blood. The fractures, even though serious and the source of the blood loss, may take days and weeks before they are even attended to beside the superficial dressings.
Nigeria now needs peace and stability first. Then we talk of good governance later even though it’s the source of the predicament we are facing.
The present government has already charged the situation and played the religious divide to its advantage. It’s in circulation now, a SW pastor calling on Christians and the church to vote Jonathan as their only Saviour. This religious card will be used to cover his deficiency in governance.
Your Excellency, you should understand too, that many, if not most of your supporters, are also looking up to you to protect them from the onslaught on their religion and region. This also the Christian will never believe the otherwise.
Therefore the stage is set for religious confrontation which is the least the nation needs.
What we need as a priority is peace and stability.
From my view, if APC can support as an example Ameachi or Okorocha/Kwankwaso or El-Rufai or Tambuwwal ticket and the PDP will have Akpabio/Muazu or Ribadu or Shekaru, the next four years will. – insha Allah – witness stability both in the north and south. And the electoral body will get the necessary infrastructure that subsequently the next election will be free and fair and the true reflection of Nigerians.
If you may ask, why can’t this same peace be achieved with you and another Christian running mate?
Gen. you have antagonist, and they are many and also as ardent as your supporters. Your supporters have the biggest proportion of the underprivileged of the society which is the petrol that can be easily ignited by the slightest spark. The spark will be when you’re declared the loser. And you know you can very well lose if the Christians follow their church -and why not in this era of mediocrity.
On the other hand if Jonathan comes back. BH will be real not the political one we see. The turmoil will engulf the whole country not only the north. That is why I also call on PDP to present some other candidates.
My brother in Islam, please listen to the words of wisdom. And don’t follow the whims of the riffraff. Before they used you the first time to disrupt the second republic, my father advised you against it. Today I am also advising you against contesting in the 2015 presidential election because you will be used to ignite the nation -a dream well orchestered several years ago- and also be used by bad people as a ladder to grab regional and local powers.
I rest my case here.
My best regards and condolence for your recent loss.
May Allah guide you and protect you from the evil men and the jinn. Amin

yousee:
The truth is that millions of Nigerians don't want them both

duality:
And another truth is that, there are millions of nigerians that want them.

dplordx:
There has never been a president who went as low as to plumb tribal and religious sentiments as much as GEJ....

mazzi:
When northern muslim were threating the unity of nigeria after 2011 election whr were u?when buhari was asking muslims to only vote muslims were u sleeping? Oga come with another propaganda biko!

mikeansy:
People accuse Jonathan of being divisive without giving examples of divisive policies or positions the President has taken.

Out of interest can someone give examples?

mikeansy:
People accuse Jonathan of being divisive without giving examples of divisive policies or positions the President has taken.

Out of interest can someone give examples?

jaytee01:
I don't believe that GEJ has divisive policies or even acts in a divisive manner but his tacit encouragement of or refusal to distance himself from ethnocentric touts like Clark and Dokubo etc has really harmed his image as a leader.
The activities of many of his aides in fuelling a surreptitious campaign especially on online media platforms against Buhari and sections of the north is not helping his cause at all.

mikeansy:
So how do you accuse a President of being divisive not based on what he does, says or how he governs but based on what others do or say?

This is really ridiculous

I need someone to please point to a divisive utterance or policy of Jonathan?

I am waiting!