₦airaland Forum

babapupa:
You keep asking people to learn to read, but when are you going to cure your Ignorance ravaged brain with basic knowledge about Lagos state?

You don't know anything, you wont offer any meaningful solution to anything. All you do is say no to and object to everything Lagos.

It's just a shame that people are going back and forth with you because they don't know you and your twilight zone sense of reasoning, I'm sure they are catching on. 

You are nothing but a nuisance in the arena of ideas and intelligent discussion.

Haba!. I think you are going too far here. Check all her postings here, and you will see some sense in all. She might not be on your side does not mean she does not know anything. How many ladies contributed here?

Enjoyment1:
There is no point for any mass protest, Ibori is very likely to return, perhaps after 2011 elections. He will get peace once he refuses to be relevant in the forth coming.

Wise saying. Let him just rest, stay out of Politics and enjoy his loot.

I dont want to believe there are no more lands in Lagos. Have they been to Ikorodu and Epe? It is just that, the rich are just trying to enlarge the gap between them and the poor. If indeed the government knows what they are doing, they should evenly distribute these infrastructure, except for some, that needs to be sighted in some strategic areas. My major concern here now is, why concentrate all these in just Victoria Island/Ikoyi/and Lekki?

Jonathan had better not run, says ACF chieftain
From: Saxone Akhaine, Kaduna
Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Anthony Sani spoke to Saxone Akhaine in kaduna.

Excerpts:

What is your assessment of the new federal cabinet appointed by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan and how does your organization view it, with regards to the ability chosen ministers to redress the nation's multi-faceted problems?

I don't have any objection in his appointing the ministers. And I am not in a position to know whether they met the required standard or not because he has his own information about them, particularly when a good number of them are not visible, and you know if they have not been in public affairs before you will not be in a position to assess any of them. To that extent I cannot say whether he has done a very good job or not. But, if I were he I will not bring back any sacked minister, precisely because, in the first place this country was almost divided by the Federal Executive Council under Yar'adua. It reached a level such that the Acting President couldn't run a united government again. And so, it was fair that he dissolved them because there were pro-Yar'Adua and pro-Jonathan. In that case he should have just sacked all of them. Now, whether you bring Yar'Adua people in they will call it appeasement, if you also bring Jonathan group in they will say favoritism and they will accuse you of victimization. So, you end up creating bickering if you are bringing some of them in. If I were him I will not bring any of those who served Yar'adua into the new cabinet. I will only plead with them that if that will be the only sacrifice they will make for this country it is a small price, they should accept it. You see, the idea of bringing some of them in could expose him to another round of bickering.

Politicians are already jostling for the 2011 elections and presidential hopefuls from the North like retired General Ibrahim Babangida are bracing up for the contest. How will you react to the mounting opposition against the Candidacy of Babangida today?

I think there are reactions from all sides. I have seen those who want Babangida to contest and also those who are opposing him. Majority of those opposing him are saying no, you annulled June 12, how can you now come to contest under a democratic regime, which you did not work for. Also, there are some people from the South-South who prefers him and are ready to die for him, and saying that he should be given a chance at about 70 years of age so that he will do one tenure and move back to his house.

We in the north, particularly ACF do not promote any candidate. But we have criteria, where we ask northerners to look for every aspirant that is credible and try to contest election. We cannot as ACF adopt a particular candidate because all the political parties are in ACF, all the gladiators namely Babangida, Atiku and Buhari are patron of ACF. So, you will find out that ACF will not come out and adopt a particular candidate, because that will amount to killing the Forum. But, we shall present the qualities that are required from a credible candidate and if you know that you don't meet the qualities then you should know that you are out and you cannot represent the north.

Does General Babangida meet the credibility requirements of the ACF?

Definitely, he will meet some, and he may not meet some. But, I don't know if there will be anybody that will be able to meet all. For example, people say he did not fight corruption when he was in office, not that they are saying he is corrupt. But, by not fighting corruption that means he endorsed corruption. However, others are saying he was very sensitive, he did not allow the recirculation of certain individuals, whether as ministers or as governors, and when you consider the political economy, where government functioned on who gets what, how and when, you know that he would give people to have a sense of belonging. And if you look at it again, when you make too much criticism Babangida is somebody who will give you something. Look at (Prof.) Wole Soyinka, when he criticized him so much, Babangida gave him the Road Safety Corps to manage. When Late Tai Solarin criticized him very hard, he gave him Peoples Bank to manage. So, there are certain things that are in his favour, and there are other things that worked against him, which I admit.

You sound like a supporter of Babangida and you may, for example, readily accept that, as his critics say, he was the architect of the bad economic policies that ruined the nation?

Babangida brought up the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) which is widely believed to have killed the middle class in Nigeria, but since he left, there has not been any attempt to stop the policy. Like, the argument that he brought to the fore, he left when the Naira was 22 Naira to a dollar. But, right now it is 150 to a dollar. Does it mean that there has not been any President who can stop this? You see, there are socio-economic indices which the international community uses to rate our economy, and Nigeria is the only country that its yesterday is always better than today. Have we as a people ever thought about this problem? Could it be that we could not have leaders that could have put a stop to our economy nose-diving?

So, even if we want to blame him for bringing SAP, that does not mean there was no leader that could have stopped the negative effects of that economic policy, including Olusegun Obasanjo who was rated to have been very dominant and very strong. You see, to me Babangida's SAP, had a human face because he never allowed co-investors so me and you could buy. But, during Obasanjo's time, they allowed co-investor it was an extreme of its own. In other words, under his policy, people like me would be nobody. But, what happened then, from the time he left office, the situation is still a continuation of SAP. Could it be that all the governments are in love with Structural Adjustment Programmes or what happened? You mean after 17 years nobody could change the nation's economy for better, this is still a mystery.

Some people are saying that if Jonathan performs well within the short timeframe he could be given a chance to run for the Presidency in 2011, what is your attitude to this contention?

Listen to me very well Jonathan has the right to contest the election. There is no law that bares him. There is no law whatsoever. But, we are operating under certain arrangement. And I want to give you the history of the arrangement, which people are pretending not to agree with. During the Abacha's Constitutional Conference, it was the Ekweme who led the southerners to insist in the spirit of power shift and that there should be rotation in the politics of Nigeria. The north said no, that would be anti-democratic because by saying zoning, rotation, you are killing democracy.

But, somehow because Ekweme was more articulate, and given the injustice done to Abiola by annulling June 12, they conceded to zoning and rotation to the extent that even when the Alliance For Democracy (A D) could not score the 5 percent required in the local government election, the law was waived in favour of AD. It was all in the spirit of zoning and rotation. In 1999, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presented Obasanjo in the spirit of rotation and ANPP presented Falae, even from AD then. It was all in the spirit of rotation and zoning because of the injustice done to Abiola.

So, in essence it is the southerners that foisted rotation, power shift and zoning on the polity. They took advantage of the mood of the nation at that time and everybody conceded. Now, they gave them the first eight years, let me tell you before Yar'Adua falling sick comes in, on which ground you seek to upturn the arrangement. What will Jonathan say, even though it in his own right to contest, but what will he say? In the first place, rotation, power shift and zoning were a southern agenda. The south have done their own, are they going to swallow their words now? Though Jonathan is entitled to vie and I don't think ACF is in a position to oppose it.

Let us get it right if eventually the zoning formula were cancelled will the ACF oppose the action?

No we will not oppose it. But, who is going to cancel it? You are asking an imaginary question. Who is going to cancel it? I am saying that the vocal group which is the south are the ones that brought rotation, so who is going to cancel it now?

Assuming somebody else emerges from the south, will the north support him?

I pray he does, but we should have known him by now. Why should we restrict it to few gladiators? The visible aspirants who are capable of coming out for the presidential election we all know them.

Are you not bothered that Nigeria continues to recycle old politicians that have been there before for the presidency in this century when the world is moving at jet speed and the younger generation are taking over?

I am very bothered when it comes to that issue. At the moment, we have the youths in the National Assembly; they call them "I-second-the-motion." They don't bring motions; they always second the motion, and they are the youth. We have governors that are young, have they delivered the goods? So, I don't think it is a matter of age. I agree that re-circling the same people is bad. But, it is not a matter of age. Regan of America was at 70 and he made America feel young.

So, if somebody makes me feel young in this country by putting the economy right that means I have hope. See what happened in America before the election of Obama, it was the youth. They mobilized 5 dollars, 10 dollars and so on for his campaign. So, let the masses take a cue from the happenings around the world to salvage the nation. Here, it is the same youths that are being used for rigging, for election crisis and so on. This time around let the youths themselves not be the problem. As 2011 approaches, let the youths engage themselves for positive political changes in Nigeria.

http://www.nigeriamasterweb.com/paperfrmes.html

Na wah oh!. Ibori in London court, Ibori in Appeal Court Benin, Ibori in Asaba court. By now, he should be having high blood pressure!. What a life?

From inception, OBJ has always wanted to be relevant in politics, that is why he made himself to be the head of his party, when he was the President. That is why Jonathan is very powerful now.

There is no point going that far. This is just an ordinary forum, where people argue facts and figures, just to come to a compromise.

Akanbi_edu:
Thank you.

We southerners are too proud and politically naive. A lot believe because they have many certificates and more educated qualifies them better than the northerners. But alas, it is democracy. Its a game of numbers. One man one vote.

currently I don't want to delve into the statistics according to last census. A common sense approach will let us know that all equations of numbers favours the north more.why? We have adopted the Husband,wife and 2 children lifestyle(I am not saying it is bad or good), compare to a man, four wives and 15 children in average north west home. who is going to get more numbers in the nearest future?

I tried to make this poster realize that ruling is not for the most competent but about numbers. We need to realize that if free and fair election is conducted in Nigeria, northerners will win most of the time. Up till now, we still can't get the SW and SE to agree on anything! The division in the south is too much.

I hope these proud people will sit down and reason that the zoning arrangement actually favours the south. Thats what people like Obasanjo knows.

In actual fact, the south is too divided, that is why the north always have upper hand, when it comes to "politricking". They might not have the certificates, but they have the one "voice" thing, which was exhibited in ANPP primaries in 2003, when all the northerners had to step down for Buhari, while the South East alone, had about 6 Presidential contestants in one party, and in the same election year, contesting for the same post!.

Otobroto:
Mr. Yar'adua, now that it has been confirmed that you can walk, talk and let us all be in peace. We are tired of speculations!.

With the current health situation of Yar'adua, Turai may spring some surprises, very soon!.

o9999:
Ok so y does all these OBJ using GJ and hunting sound like a what pple were saying during alamaesigha's hunt. Pls if u were the leader of a country and your IG refuses to arrest d person he is ordered to cos of who the person is, then the person becomes an enemy of state and u will want him dead of alife after which u deal with the IG

My Dear, this is the problem with many people here. They just talk because someone opened his mouth wide, and others immediately concurred, without investigation or reference. Who told you IG does not want to arrest Ibori? Have you been to Oghara before? Oghara is village (turned town by Ibori) and it can boast of street lights provided by James Ibori. You can hardly see a street not tarred, except it used to be a very minor or isolated road before Ibori left power. Oghara is a village, but he turned it into town. There are street lights there, and they are powered by generators provided now by the state government, but they used to be powered by solar system. Some areas not covered by generator powered street lights, the solar system takes care of that. How many state capitals in Nigeria can boast of that? How many? That is why those boys/militants are ready to die for him. That is why those women did what they did. He did so much for his people, that many now see him as a worthy son. Oghara even has a stadium, can you imagine? Zain Nigeria have a big office in Oghara, what does that mean to you? Emplyment, I guess? Yes, he might have stolen to go that far, but his people felt the impact of his government.

That is the reason, the Police are very cautious about the whole thing. If he must be arrested, then lives will be lost, and many properties will be destroyed, by both the government and the militants. This will not portray the current OBJ machined government well. That is the truth.

marvix:
I don't c y anyone shld be bothered if Jonathan is bein used by Obj wat if Jonathan is actually using Obj I personally think dat a lot of u guys on this forum underrate this man Goodluck Jonathan.


Does Ibori have a case 2 answer or not? If he has nothin 2 hide he shld come out and stop d drama. Jonathan can choose which corrupt person he likes at least even if Ibori remains in hidin he can't come out nd campaign against Jonathan.



When Jonathan bcoms substantive president he can den go ahead to declare d same Obj wanted dead or alive or is it not d same Ibori dat financed the campaign dat made Jonathan VP in d 1st place, it wld be a mata of time b4 Obj nd Jonathan fell apart.

There is nothing you will say here, except you have enough credible facts, OBJ is using Jonathan to hunt his opponents. Jonathan has never done anything so unique even when he was the Deputy governor of Bayelsa. For GOD sake, how can you say a man should be arrested dead or alive (if he actually said that)? Why would he be hunting Yar'adua's men if he does not have any interior motive? If you must fight corruption, let it be 100% total war. Okay, we assume he is fighting corruption, then his wife should be in jail by now. OBJ should have been in jail, immediately he took over as Acting President. IBB should not even have the effrontery to tell us again under Jonathan that he wants to contest, if indeed Jonathan is fighting corruption. There are many begging questions, he needs to give us answers.

goldenterp:
It is what it is. Jonathan is being used by Obasanjo more than any other group in the PDP can boast of. I wonder why people are getting excited about handing over power BACK to ex-president Obasanjo( If you are excited about Jonathan, understand that you are excited about Obasanjo). Did i hear someone say nothing has changed?

Guy, nothing has changed indeed. Even if Ibori is caught today, it does not mean that one corruption battle in the war has been won. It would mean that, one anti-OBJ has gone to jail, instead of corrupt leader. If Jonathan was to fight corruption, he should have sent OBJ first to jail, before declaring, "give me Ibori dead or alive".

nikkykay:
This shows hw shallow your brain is!!!! U retarded slowpoke.

It has not gotten to this point of calling people names, he is just trying to express his opinion. Lets say it without any fear of favour. Mr. Jonathan has failed!!!. He has failed in the area of allowing OBJ to use him. If Jonathan then becomes the full president, then we shall return the to the era of using government agencies, to hunt fellow political opponents. I did love Jonathan more than Yar'adua, but the events of Ibori's chase has killed that passion for him. Let him chase all corrupt leaders, both past and current. Having to say all that rubbish, about getting Ibori dead or alive, makes one now thing that there is another interior motive. Mr. President, is a fool, to allow himself to be used against Ibori. Fight corruption, on the grounds of corruption and nothing more, and you will get absolute people's support.

Best remembered for being slow.

chidichris:
@naijamini,
if u have been following my posts even in the days of ribadu, i am of the opinion that since this country is no man's land, let them enjoy the opportunities they have without disturbing the common man.
obasanjo and atiku have been together in the stealing industry for years but simply because they disagreed over third term, obasanjo through his dog(ribadu) turned to us to say, this man atiku is a criminal. funny enough, atiku shamelessly said yes dog, i am acriminal but i do that with your master(obasanjo).
we are no longer against their criminalities but let them leave us alone.
everybody has equal right even in the stealing industry of nigeria so if odili has the right to steal and live, ibori shld equally be allowed to steal and live.
iyabo obasanjo is facing criminal charges of which we were mearnt to understand that efcc dloes not lie so why fast forwarding the case of atiku leaving everyother case behind?
if they want to move nigeria forward, let the laws be for all nigerians and not for a few.
until somebody constitutionally ask our politicians their sources for all the crazy mansions they build over nights, we will not be anywhere close to war against corruption.
I CHALLANGE ANYONE IN THIS FORUM TO MENTION HIS/HER STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY MEMBER AND TELL US HOW RICH HE WAS BEFORE TAKING THE POST AND HOW RICH HE IS NOW AFTER THE OFFICE.
they are all criminals so let this justice be for all and not just ibori

Well said jare. You have said it, the same way it is.

@naijamini, the truth is always bitter, embrace it the way it is stated above.

naijamini:
I cannot believe this crap about Ibori's Chase being unjustified and getting him sympathy - surely the sympathy of syncophants whose job is precisely that.

Nigerians don't need to worry about which thief is catching which thief. Don't they say that only a thief can track a thief on the rock. Na so so they will turn on each other.

If Jonathan has a case to answer, surely his day would come, but until then I don't care who is bringing Ibori to justice. Let him show up and defend himself. If there is no honor among thiefs, whose fault is that.

Nigerians should just stop being their own worst enemies by protecting those who don't give a hoot about your pathetic life simply because a thief is chasing a thief.

See guy, Ibori is just being persecuted for his stand for Yar'adua and family. He deserves whatever he is getting though, eventhough it is now glaring that, Jonathan is being used to achieve this, so that Ibori will drop his VP election stand. Whether people are pitying him or not, does not hold water, but the method and the real reason behind should not be ignored.

redsun:
Why is the motherfuck-er so sure he is going to win?because he is been pre-elected as the member of the criminal gang that runs nigeria(pdp).

There no election in nigeria on presidential level.

He knows that, if he can scale through the primaries at PDP, the sky is the limit. That is why he is running away from other parties. He should have tasted his popularity with other parties first. He will be brought to shame in this forthcoming elections.

redsun:
To be a member of pdp means being a member of the criminal syndicate and like any other criminal sydicate,out of greed and stupidity,they gang against one another every now and then.

Ibori shouldn't be pitied,he is just paying the price that all of them will eventual pay when their time is up

You are very correct. That is why IBB wants to join the party of like-minds so a s to achieve his dream. Yes, Ibori is a thief but you need to see how Delta was in 1999, and how Delta was after he left. Go to Benin, and you will forever curse Igbienedion, and wonder EFCC still allow him cruise round town with customised cars in Abuja unmolested, and not even with a security aide. Is this not another case of selective justice and injustice in Nigeria? Why?

Enjoyment1:
These are facts we already know; Mr. Reporter we need fresh news!.

Well, some of the facts might be old, but it is another way of educating the public and more so, it is a public forum, let others benefit. Jonathan is not worth the praise. He is just playing out someone's scripts.

Wole Soyinka: How Smart Are Thou? • Shuu, Notin Be Wayo, My Neighbour Na Sense Pass Sense - Urhobo Man
(****ANOTHER SUITABLE TOPIC FOR THIS: HOW JONATHAN DECEIVED WOLE SOYINKA****)


BY MICHAEL ODIGBE
If the truth must be told, then Acting President Goodluck Jonathan outsmarted Prof Wole Soyinka during the latter’s visit to the Presidential Villa. During the encounter, Dr Goodluck Jonathan spoke sweetly about his commitment to the amnesty deal with Niger Delta ex- militants and Uwais recommendations for electoral reforms, Soyinka told us Dr. Goodluck Jonathan’s credentials however shouldn’t make him a credible person to an illiterate Ring Road shoe repairer in Benin let alone a person of Professor Wole Soyinka’s intellectual calibre. See, to start with, Jonathan is a beneficiary of Obasanjo’s political largesse of candidate imposition in 2007.

Who doesn’t know that, deploying his power of incumbency, Obasanjo used military fiat to draft as well as impose Yar’Adua and Jonathan as PDP Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates. Fortunately enough, the PDP constitution which discounts internal democracy aided Obasanjo to achieve his goal.

Secondly, Jonathan and Yar’Adua are also inheritors of the Presidential Villa through flaw elections in 2007 masterminded by Obasanjo. Atleast, Yar’Adua told the nation this in 2008. Hence, he set up the Uwais Panel to recommend the way forward for credible election in 2011, so to speak.

Thirdly, it is no longer a hidden secret that Jonathan is a protégé- sorry, I mean a Godson-of Obasanjo. Therefore, the soul of Jonathan’s words, thoughts and deed is
Obasanjoran. In other words, Jonathan will always be Esau in Nigeria’s current political equation as Obasanjo plays Jacob.

Certainly, it is these three salient facts our cerebral Wole Soyinka ought to take into consideration when dealing with Jonathan. Soyinka indeed, ought to dine and wine with Jonathan, a personification of Obasanjo, with a long, wooden spoon. Sadly enough, this is not what happened. Rather Soyinka walked into the Presidential Villa on March 27, 2010. to see Jonathan and came out pleased with him.

Apparently, playing Obasanjo smart card Jonathan was able to “convince “Soyinka that he holds the Uwais recommendations on electoral reforms clear to his heart. So when Soyinka emerged from the Villa he turned information communication minister for Jonathan.

Hear Soyinka: “We also discussed electoral reforms of which he is a very clear supporter. He is a very keen believer in it. I got very good vibrations from him. I believe from every conversation, and even before now that he is of a different cast of mind and that if everything is left to him, I have no doubt at all that there will be a commendable tempo in the passage of the Uwais report and recommendations.

A corper who chooses anonymity is so bemused that a man of Wole Soyinka’s calibre could be so gullible as to be bamboozled by Jonathan’s homily on Uwais report. Yet, while discussing with Jonathan, it was “Obasanjo” he was talking to literally. Afterall, there is no political difference between Jonathan and Obasanjo argues the corper.

In simple terms therefore in the Presidential Villa tete-a-tete held on 26th March, 2010 the acting president Jonathan outsmarted Soyinka. Too true Jonathan gave him a pinfall. While behaving like Sun Tzu, a one-time chief strategist and a teacher of Chairman Mao. The man Sun Tzu in his work THE ART OF STRATEGY says: “Always use rewards, distractions, substitutions and inconsistencies to keep yourself in control over your opponents”.

These are Sun Tzu strategies Jonathan seems to have adopted in his meeting with Soyinka which made him believe that Obasanjo-sorry, I am talking about Jonathan –is a true supporter of Uwais report and recommendations on electoral reforms.

Weekend Observer is of the opinion that from his recent outing with Jonathan, it appears Soyinka is yet to understand what “smartness” is all about. For this reason, the magazine this week will dwell on this subject which is critical for survival of men and nation.
Preliminaries

Recall the biblical story of how Christ handled the issue of taxation during the days of the Roman empire. The Jews had searched in vain for ways of putting him in trouble so that he might be jailed or crucified for treason. Finally, they settled for one which centred around payment of taxes to Caesar, emperior of the Roman Empire.

And, so, they asked Christ: “Is it proper to pay taxes to Caesar instead of God since you claim we should only pay tribute to God?” Christ knew they had set a trap for him. If he told them not to pay tribute to the supreme God, he will be accused of anti-Godism. Meanwhile, if he says that they shouldn’t pay tribute to Caesar but only to God, he would be branded a treasonable felon challenging Caesar’s rule. A catch-22 situation.

Well, Christ had the presence of mind to take the Jews’ question in stride. He asked the Jews to produce a coin used for paying taxes and engaging in other monetary transactions. The Jews did. Thereafter, Christ asked them which insignia the coin had.

They answered that it was that of Caesar. At this exact point, Christ delivered novelistic the denouement that unsettled them. He said: “Therefore, give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s”.

Chikena … Ofone …Oku-agu-yes, finish. Alas, Christ outsmarted the Jews plotting his downfall, with his apt response.
The 1966 Nzeogwu Coup

Appraising Christ’s performance, an Urhobo man merely say: “Shuu, notin be wayo atal atal, my neighbour. Na sense only pass sense”. True talk. The “sense” displayed by Christ was the same one also displayed by Major Tim Onwuatuegwu, one of the five major’s involved in the Nzeogwu coup of January 1966. Major Onwuatuegwu was assigned by the coup makers to take care of Brigadier Samuel Ademulegun and Colonel Sodeinde, all living in Kaduna.
When the major broke into Brigadier Ademulegun’s bedroom, he flicked on the light. Behold, the brigadier who was in bed with his wife, was roused from sleep only to find the major brandishing a sten machine gun in his hand.

Brigadier Ademulegun shouted at him: “What the hell are you doing here, Tim? How did you get here in the first place?

But Tim Onwuatuegwu countered: “Sir, you are under arrest!! !”
From Tim’s reply, Brigadier Ademulegun knew he was in deep trouble. But he was a brave soldier who wouldn’t give up so easily. Therefore, his smart mind began to work out a survival plan as his right hand slowly inched towards his service pistol lying at a spot near the head of his bed. At this climactic point, his wife was already on her knees pleading with Major Onwuatuegwu to save their lives.

Hopefully, Brigadier Ademulegun saw the wife’s move as a good distraction for Major Onwuatuegwu. It would enable him to quickly pick up his service pistol and gun him down, Brigadier Ademulegun thought.

However, Major Onwuatuegun who had pushed his sten gun’s safe catch and had his finger on the trigger was smarter. He saw through all the plot. So, he pulled the trigger. A cascade of shot rang out, leaving Brigadier Ademulegun and his wife dead in a pool of their own blood.

Major Onwuatuegwu took no chances with the Brigadier and his wife. He outsmarted them to survive. But Major Chukuma Nzeogwu was not as smart as Onwuatuegwu in his interface with Major-Gen Thomas Aguiyi-Ironsi, their Nigeria’s first military head of state After Nzeogwu’s 1966 coup had failed, he was making plans to move on to Lagos from his Kaduna base with a military contigent of loyal troops to topple from power opportunistic Ironsi had become military head of state based in Lagos following the botched coup by Nzeogwu, who at the time was still in control of the North from his secured base in Kaduna.

Ironsi realized that it wouldn’t be feasible to take on Nzeogwu in a military power contest. Therefore, he used transparent subterfuge to domesticate Nzeogwu. How? He sent Col. Conrad Nwawo, a kinsman of Nzeogwu, to Kaduna to plead with him to come over to Lagos for negotiations to end the coup.

Nzeogwu swallowed the bait. When he arrived Lagos with Col. Nwawo, he was promptly detained by Ironsi. Alas, he was outsmarted. His rebellion was crushed because his arrest signaled the decapitation of the coup.

Now, enter General Babangida (1985 – 1993). Before he became a military head of state in Nigeria he demonstrated his swashbuckling, smart carriage as a colonel on February 13, 1976. On this day, Lt. Colonel Bukar Sukar Dimka was leading a coup against the regime of General Murtala Mohammed. Dimka had already seized Radio House at Ikoyi from where news of the coup was being announced at intermittent intervals.

While the coup was on, Babangida was the army officer sent by then army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma to the Radio House to “dialogue” with Dimka. A coup in progress is a war situation by all definitions. Invariably, Babangida should have gone to the Radio House armed to the teeth. But he was smart enough to realize that if he did so, Dimka would consider him an enemy combatant. This explains why he went to the Radio House without even his service pistol.

While there he called out to Dimka who appeared in a corridor of the Radio House clutching a gun. On seeing him, Dimka said in hausa raising his gun: “How I wish I could shoot you dead right away. Certainly, you are not on my side.”

Smiling, Babangida retorted, also, in hausa: “Ah! There will be nothing wrong for the world to hear that I have been killed. Not by anyone else but my own dear friend, Dimka.

Trust, Babangida’s smart conversational skill disarmed Dimka’s suspicion of him. At the end of the day, Dimka invited Babangida into the Radio House. There Babangida delivered Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma’s message to Dimka and other coup plotters. The message? It was what their demands were so that the coup could be annulled. Of course, Dimka outlined their requests with which Babangida left the Radio House.

However, unknown to Dimka, the smart Babangida didn’t only come to the Radio House to “know” their demands, he equally came for two reasons. Firstly, he called to spy on Dimka’s military defences at the Radio House. Secondly, he wanted to give Dimka the impression that there was no need to press on with the staggering coup since all the coup plotters’ grievances will be addressed by government. Deploying these tactics, Babangida was able to create a cooling period for the coup as well as enable Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma mobilize resources for a counter-coup to neutralize Dimka and his colleagues.

Hence, it was no surprise that moments after leaving the Radio House, Babangida re-appeared in battle fatigues leading a convoy of armoured personnel carriers, ferret cars, saladins and truckloads of loyal troops. He came not to deliver Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma’s favourable reply to Dimka’s demands but to flush him out of the Radio House. That is exactly what Babangida did during his second coming. Too true, he outsmarted Dimka in the unfolding power game at the Radio House.

Why the opposition should be wary of Jonathan
Briefly, what a wise man learns from these smart cases cited in this magazine is that life is a football match in which opponents try to out smart each other with dare-devil opportunism. In life victory goes to someone who is not necessarily Godfearing or more muscular, determined, resourceful and hardworking but to a smarter person.

It is for this reason, for instance, that NPN of old and the PDP of today have been winning elections through massive rigging.

Coincidentally, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan is a member of this same PDP which its chairman Vincent Ogbulafor has boasted will rule Nigeria for sixty years. Like other members of the PDP, Jonathan wants national, state and local government political relevance for the party. Still, like his PDP colleagues Jonathan has natural phobias about a life in Nigeria without PDP in control of the central government in Abuja. Given all these, he will always be a protagonist of PDP victory at all elections. This is more so now that he is the flagbearer of the party, being its acting president.

Therefore, it is surprising that Wole Soyinka can so easily be taken in by Jonathan’s “sweet” talk about institutionalizing the Uwais’ electoral recommendations. Does Soyinka need to be told that in all sincerity – Jonathan hates them naturally. This is because they won’t enable the PDP to win the presidency, keep its majority in the national and state houses of assembly; state government houses; as well as local government councils? So does it mean Soyinka is unaware that Jonathan is wearing a PDP bone around his neck presently as acting President of Nigeria.

He is not going to eat the bone; neither is he contemplating to hand it over to another president from another party in 2011. Respondents told (Weekend Observer) that since every politician is a Machievillian, one should therefore expect Jonathan to play Winston Churchill’s card. So, it is a tragedy for the Soyinkas to believe that Jonathan will preside over the liquidation of PDP presidency in 2011 through accepting an Uwais recommendations that guarantees free and fair elections. Infact, an insider informed Weekend Observer that Obasanjo is even grooming Jonathan for the 2011 presidency, using the smart tactics and strategies for which he is well known. Weekend Observer has no reason to doubt this. For instance, taking a close look at Obasanjo’s political antecedents reveal that he is a pathological schemer who believes all is fair in war.

Hence, he is merciless in his bid to outwit everyone else but himself in any encounter. It is in pursuance of this philosophy of Machievelli that made him out smart Babangida, Abdulsalami Abubakar and other power-brokers like Atiku who offered the presidency to him on a platter of gold in 1999. They wanted him to play the role of John the Baptist for the North that is, stay in office for one term and leave in 2003 to allow in a Northerner, probably Babangida, to come in as president. However, smart Obasanjo stayed in office until 2007. That is, he was president for two terms. As if this wasn’t enough, he schemed for a third term that would have ended in 2011.

However, this plot didn’t work. Later, in anger and frustration, he imposed a sick northerner Umaru Yar’Adua and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan as president and vice-president of Nigeria, respectively. The arrangement was calculated to allow Jonathan to become president when in future a medically in capacitated Yar’Adua is unable to complete his first term in office.

Also, it is in a diabolic bid to outsmart others that Obasanjo tricked the Loobo governors of the South-Western State in AD Party into a fake political arrangement during the 2003 general elections that saw them losing out to the PDP. Similarly, playing the same disingenuous game of tricking others, Weekend Observer recalls that Obasanjo invited Asari-Dokubo, a Niger Delta freedom fighter, to the Presidential Villa for dialogue only to arrest and detain him for over a year

. Lest one forgets, Obasanjo again used decoy to give Charles Taylor of Liberia asylum in consonance with Britain, America and other African collaborators. Later, he contrived a false escape with Taylor that allowed him to be driven in a government vehicle to a neighbouring state’s border. There, Taylor was accused of trying to escape. He was arrested by the SSS, put on board a plane and subsequently flown to Hague, The Netherlands where he is now facing trial a the ICC at genocide, war crimes and crime against humanity.

Wole Soyinka ought to know from these incidents that Obasanjo is a very smart, cunny man to be cautious of. Much more, Soyinka is supposed to be aware that Jonathan is an Obasanjo in government. So anything treatise by Jonathan on the need to adopt the Uwais report and recommendations is all sugar talk full of sound and fury. It signifies nothing since it is made to deceive Soyinka, a great pillar of support for progressives in Nigeria.

Oops, what a lucky man Goodluck Jonathan has always been imagine, once again, he has been lucky with outsmarting an erudite scholar of Soyinka’s sanding. But what a calamity for Nigeria’s opposition!!


http://nigerianobservernews.com/10042010/weekendobserver/features/indexfeatures2.html

chidichris:
i have said it here times without numbers, Ibori shld stand his ground and fight this war with every possible weapon. he must make sure that at least 100 ppl go down before him. he must not let himself to be picked and treat like a child as was the case of alams.
if obasanjo,goodluck and co are ready to fight corruption, let them make it a general thing and not a selective business.
on the other hand, the rumour of ribadu coming back to nigeria will be because of the nearness of the elections because he will act very well as a distractive factor as we saw in the last election where oposition had their bitter battles in passing the screening of ribadu.
i am well convienced that ribadu will not have an easy run this time arround.

When I said the other time, that OBJ was now in power, that Jonathan is the weakest link in Yar'adua's govt, many short-sighted shouted me down, but I wonder why they have all gone too now. You can now see the hand writing of OBJ hunting those they dont want to contest 2011 elections. The same method they used to pick Yar'adua is now in force. Am I wrong?

This woman is really confused, as she has become a tool under the present government. How I wished, she started this immediately she assumed that position;  Corruption in this country would have subsided.

Oboma1:
EFCC have shown one reason we cannot have state police in Nigeria. In as much as I will never support corruption, I hate seeing government agency being used as a tool to intimidate opposition (whether as pay back or not).

Well, will one really say that, Jonathan is paying Ibori back for what he did? Come to think of it, did Ibori really attack Jonathan, or he was only trying to protect himself, by making sure the government of the day remains, so that, a day like this never come?

Oboma1:
It is not only that, Jonathan knows Ibori wants to contest the next elections with either IBB or with Atiku, that is why the political persecution.

Nigerian politics has become such a game that, even 2 brothers can kill one another just to become relevant. The case of Andy and Chris Uba is a typical example. With the new title attached to it "do or die", then it will be very hard to get a true leader, for fear of being killed.

I am not against your comment here, but I was against you calling someone's wife ugly. The main reason why EFCC is chasing after Ibori will soon be known soon. As it is very now very evident, that Jonathan is fighting Ibori, because he was against his ascending the office of the Presidency. Besides, Ibori is still in the bad books of OBJ, who is now the new godfather in Nigerian politics (becos of Jonathans current position).

Oboma1:
One thing i know for sure is that, demon cannot cast out demon. Jonathan should start this ibori's hunt with his wife and obasanjo. His ugly wife too, is a thief.

Why call Jonathan's wife ugly? This is not fair at all. Soon, you will Jonathan, Baba-suwe.

From the comment here, it is evident, that even the hunters ate from the same plate Ibori ate from, and his chase is beginning to attract sympathy, and it may soon back fire on the "chasers", except they do what is right; and that is, "bring all corrupt officials to justice".

SUNDAY PUNCH NEWSPAPERS 18/04/2010.


Comments :

It is a shame that even Oasanjo still rule Nigeria, even after milking us dry. I am ashamed of Jonathan, and most ashamed of EFCC, and because all this will, Ibori is now gaining popular sympathy from Nigerians. Where is the thief called Obasanjo? Where is the thief called IBB? They are all enjoying their loots. Stop this political persecution. I am also ashamed of PUNCH Newspapers. It is very evident that you too are biased. Shame on you all.
Posted by: Sunday , on Sunday, April 18, 2010

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if want to get ibori,he comes out at night to auto–lounge,in adeola odeku,VI,lagos.however,he is protected by so call mobile police security,so mrs farida waziri please stop fooling Nigerians
Posted by: chris , on Sunday, April 18, 2010

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EFCC is not serious at all, maybe because of the Head is weak. If it’s serious, it ought to have arrested Ibori, Igbinedion, Peter odili, Orji Uzor Kalu and the likes of these. EFCC can’t claim ignorance of the whereabout of Ibori. They are just afraid. Nobody can hide away from the eyes of EFCC, even if the culprit travels abroad. The Head of EFCC should be changed immediately for inefficiency, corruption, and unseriousness. Prof. Wole Shoyinka or Elder E.K Clark will do better in EFCC
Posted by: Donaldson C. Donaldson , on Sunday, April 18, 2010

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The problem in Abia States is, those who alerted EFCC about the frozen account owed by orji Uzo has all deid from, why? But all Abians are praying that the wrath of God will certainly come upon them (ORJIS) because that states is GOD"S OWN STATES, not orji"s family.
Posted by: NWA ABIA STATE , on Sunday, April 18, 2010

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But whom shall we blame? Ibori has empty the states account, but if this fund is recovered who will give an account where it goes. formal EFCC boss made over #5billion naira within a short time, nobody care, Abacha"s loot recovered, where is the money? nobody cares. Our president and Governors will becomes billion with six months in the office, that was their mission, BUT ONE MAN HAS SHOWN ME THAT NIGERIA WILL ONE DAY CHANGE–WHO IS THAT? LAGOS STATE GOVERNOR.
Posted by: UMU ABIA WOKEUP , on Sunday, April 18, 2010


http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201004184302471

I do not care what anyone will say here, but one thing is sure here, let Fashola submit himself for probe, and prove people wrong. Shekinah!.

kosovo:
The Only thing IBB needs, is just the get a ticket, or Campaign independently . . . He could be the first Independent President in Nigeria . . .
Keeping fingers crossed . . .

I will really love to see IBB fail election in Nigeria.

You do not solve a problem, by creating another.

splashbaby:
Aboki or christian fanatics?

How do you mean?