2023 presidency: We’ve been and remain kingmakers — Northern Elders – Newstrends
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2023 presidency: We’ve been and remain kingmakers — Northern Elders

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3 years ago

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Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed

The Northern Elders Forum has said that the North will be a strong factor in determining who emerges as Nigeria’s president in 2023.

The position of the NEF was contained in a speech by its Director, Publicity and Advocacy, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed.

In the speech read on Saturday during the meeting of the Northern Leaders of Thought at the Arewa House in Kaduna, Baba-Ahmed said the North had always had a say in who becomes the leader of the country.

In the speech, titled: “Rebuilding the North,” he said: “May I start by expressing my profound appreciation for the privilege of delivering this Keynote Address on a date and a venue that have major historical significance for the North and Nigeria. This honour is all the more humbling given the significance of our present surroundings as well as the current state of the North and the country as a whole. This is also a rare event. Although groups and associations have raised voices on insecurity, poverty and the damaging decline of the economy of the  North and the setbacks in relations between communities that make up Nigeria, many Northern elders and leaders with personal integrity and other qualities who should stand up to be counted have largely retreated into the discomfort of silence.

“Younger Northerners are angry, frustrated and alienated, with virtually no linkages with elders and leaders, unless they are hired thugs in the service of politicians. Many others are criminals, bandits, informers or kidnappers exploiting the weaknesses of the State, or at margins of hopelessness in a country that they believe promises a lot and delivers nothing. This meeting appears to have been designed to commence the building of bridges that should link generations of Northerners around a vision which gives hope and heals a region lacking a single excuse for its many wounds.”

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“The effort of the organizers of this meeting, specifically to bring together prominent, elderly and future leaders of the North is particularly commendable. In this room, and in these surroundings, there is the history of people who took over the responsibility to steer the North through the challenging waters of decolonization and finding for it a fitting place in the new Nigeria. Most of them were in their 30s and 40s, but they understood their historic opportunities; the values they were prepared and groomed to defend, and the challenges which they were to face.

“Their team leader, Sir Ahmadu Bello, fell to bullets from cowardly murderers in these very premises. The people who killed him simultaneously launched Nigeria into a different and negative trajectory from which it has not recovered. Today, we can speak as three or four generations of Northerners who have seen the best and now live in the worst of the North. We can lament the loss of great opportunities, but we will also support each other to find the strengths and the courage to ask the right questions and find the right answers.

“We should use this day, at this venue full of history, to signal a turning – point in our circumstances as a people and bring an end to lamentations. We have wasted enough lives, blood, energy and resources drifting and blaming leaders who have reaped hugely from our misfortunes and self-inflicted injuries. It is enough.

“We have no one else to cry to; no one to look up to, to lead us out of terror and poverty and no one willing to use their positions to turn the fortunes of the North around. Our fate will only be designed and determined by us. We may be facing unprecedented challenges, but these are times to prepare to find extraordinary strengths and assets so that our children will be rid of the current nightmares which are our lives today.”

“We do have massive sources of energy and muscle to bring real change to our circumstances. We have the anger of people whose lives have been taken over by armed criminals who know we are basically undefended against them. We have limits on how much we can run away from bullets, rapists and kidnappers, and we are reaching those limits.

“We have memories of a period when life had values; when religious faith meant you tolerate, and  not kill those who worship differently from you; when leaders feared God and had respect for the people they led; when being a Northerner meant honesty and hard work, and not a disposable threat; when our young where taught values that prepared them to fear God,  respect authority and stand up to bullies and those who were intolerant of our basic identities and values.

“Anger is not the best fuel for change, but in our case today, it is the most potent. If used constructively and responsibly, it can create an environment that will remove its sources and its manifestations. Unfortunately for the North, it is also the only fuel source we have. We have voted people into power who have either turned their backs at us or have usurped the very sources of their power and turned them into personal assets.

“We have a democratic system that progressively benefits only a handful of leaders and politicians, and leaves millions of our people to wonder how it could be the best option available to terrorized, poor people. We have decaying value systems that breed evils such as corrupt leaders, armed criminals and drug pandemics, and encourage cheating and corruption as the only means of getting what we need. We have a huge population that is sinking into poverty and desperation in a harsh and unforgiving world.

“Every indicator suggests that things will get considerably worse in the near future. The cost of living will rise and compound the wretchedness of the poor. Armed criminality will continue to determine how we live and die, even if it could be defeated at some future date. Our political process will feed widespread violence as political competition pumps up every one of our demons to escort individual political ambitions. Our current leaders will continue to recede into their own world, mumbling incomprehensible fiction while they wait out their terms.

“The North faces two distinct choices: atrophy and destruction, or recovery and growth. The first is already visible and in the process; the second is a difficult, yet achievable goal. The most vital requirement that will make the difference between the two is a critical and honest self-evaluation. The North has to understand how cultured, hardworking and intelligent people cannot produce good leaders who can build a strong economy from its huge potential.

“How did corruption assume such magnitude among our communities that even the democratic system and our home-grown social and political structures and strong social values are now securely its hostage, consigning every segment of social life to insignificance unless it is linked to plundered wealth and stolen power? Why is its massive population a liability and not an asset, coming to life only during elections when it is needed to reinforce a shrinking democratic system, and relapsing into drudgery and scrapping an existence thereafter?

“Who and what was responsible for the virtual de-industrialization of the entire Northern region, creating patches of possibly the poorest of humanity within it, and destroying an economy that had shown an impressive potential to grow into the economic powerhouse of the nation and West Africa’s breadbasket?

“How did the North lose its tenuous hold on managing its cultural and religious diversity, setting into motion raptures that leave every community worse off, and creating enemies out of even unborn neighbours? What created the Boko Haram insurgency, and what explains its resilience and the ineffectiveness of our security assets to eliminate it? What turned some Fulani herders long used to hardship and frictions into the monsters that they are today?

“How did the Fulani, famous for learning and administration and living with huge assets with the most minimal demands on resources of the State, become identified by its lowest denominator, the Fulani bandit and kidnapper?

“Who can explain the dramatic deterioration of the most intimate of relations between Hausa and Fulani, and the rising demonization of Fulani among communities with which they are barely distinguishable, or have lived for decades or centuries?

“How did the Northerner become the villain of the rest of the nation, the source of all its recent ills and liabilities, in a country he helped build and sustain with lives, limbs, blood and labour? Above all, does the North have the capacity to re-engineer its reconstruction and sustained development?

“The North does not have the luxury of finding answers to these puzzles while the nation moves on and its problems worsen. Its only choice is to target the major source of its multiple challenges and attempt to deal with it. This, in my view, lies in the quality of its leaders and those that will lead the nation. The North needs a major shift in its elite selection processes, which will allow it to put into power, competent, honest and visionary leaders at all levels.

“What this means is that the overwhelming majority of politicians warming up in our major parties to take over and continue business as usual should be roundly rejected, and others who will not have to buy or steal power because they have credibility and evidence of some integrity will be voted in by voters who will resist the temptation to sell votes for less than a meal. The imperative of affecting major changes in the quality of leadership starting from the 2023 elections is beyond question. This is why the North should support major amendments of the electoral process, and improvements in the capacities of INEC to reduce rigging and vote-buying and violence.

“For most of what the North needs to do, the centre is important. The successful campaign to defeat the damaging narrative that no Northerner should aspire to contest for the Presidency of Nigeria is a credit to committed democrats and those who believe in justice, equity and fairness. It is important to emphasise, however, that this was not a campaign that sought to bestow any favours on the North and shortchange the rest of Nigeria.

“It was essentially meant to avoid restricting the political space, as well as the danger of the emergence of a President who bears all the hallmarks of limiting identities and the stamp of a victory of the part over the whole. Now that a level playing field is being taken up by politicians from all parts of the country, it is equally important to remind ourselves that democracy is essentially about the freedom to choose leaders, and all Nigerians should be free to choose any contestant from any part of the country they want.

“For the North, we cannot say it louder. A Northerner should be voted President only if he is the best. Being Northerner is not enough. All Nigerians need good leaders, but for us in the North, we will demand to see evidence that a candidate does not just want the power to fulfil a personal ambition. We want to see evidence that those who want to lead us in future understand the roots of and solutions to our insecurity and poverty and distances from each other.

“We want to know how irredentism will be handled; how and when major changes in our structures and systems will be made to address popular grievances over the way our country should operate; how our economy can be re-engineered to achieve sustainable development and work for the rich and the poor equally, and how our young will be groomed to become productive, honest and patriotic citizens. We will demand to see an inclusive and competent team that will campaign with the candidate and transit with him into governance. We want a thoroughly Nigerian President who will be as hard on the bandit as he will be on secessionists and insurgents. We want a President with vision and the energy to retrieve a country on the verge of collapse and place it securely on the path of stability, security and growth.

“We are, of course, some distance from next year’s elections, but it will be dangerous to ignore signs that the journey from this point until those elections could place the country in greater danger. We should warn politicians to avoid destroying a country they seek to lead. We must demand that the fight against organized, violent crimes is intensified. We need to improve elite cohesion even in the context of intensely-divisive electoral campaigns. Our leaders should avoid the temptations to roll out policies that will raise levels of desperation among the poor. Activities such as the planned population census which have enough sensitivity and potential to generate massive controversy a few months before the elections should be postponed.

“Key reforms to the constitution and the electoral process should be implemented to improve the quality of elections and signal a commitment to address limitations to our federal structures. Our leaders should raise their levels of empathy for the plight of poor and desperate citizens. To ignore the circumstances which create hundreds or even millions of internally-displaced persons and leave the next administration to handle it will be the height of irresponsibility. Huge resources must be deployed to improve the capacity of our defence and security assets and provide relief to fellow Nigerians or pauperized by criminals.

“Millions of Northerners are justifiably angry and frustrated that they are worse off today than they were before 2015 when they voted for an administration that promised to improve and secure lives. Many think voting for another set of leaders will add no value to their lives. We say turn your anger into an asset by voting in better people into office this time. There are politicians that will continue where the present administration stopped, and, while angry citizens refuse to vote, they will buy votes and get power. So, the most important thing a Northerner will do for himself and the community is to register and vote in 2023. Do not exchange your votes for another four or eight years in a country where your dignity and your life have little value.

“Distinguished participants, please look around these premises, and you will draw inspiration from strong, purposeful leadership, not just of the Sardauna, but the team he was a part of. From  Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Sir Kashim Ibrahim, Aliyu Makaman Nupe, Turaki Ali, Sunday Awoniyi, Ali Akilu and dozens of Northerners who reflected the true diversity of the North and shared a common vision and purpose, there was a North which knew its place in Nigeria and gave all it took to defend it.

“That North is still available to be recreated, but it needs to recognise the place of good leaders, hardworking and honest citizenry, a diversity that demands the highest standards of justice to manage, and a strong sense of destiny as a strong community for all who are part of it. In this hallowed hall, there is powerful history and a great potential to re-invent a region that will be great again. Please make that potential reality, and God in His infinite mercy will help us all.”

Eagle

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10 ex-Buhari’s ministers to dump APC for SDP

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2 days ago

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March 15, 2025

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10 ex-Buhari’s ministers to dump APC for SDP

There are strong indications that several former ministers who served under ex-President Muhammadu Buhari are set to defect en masse to the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

A senator from the ninth National Assembly, speaking on condition of anonymity, disclosed that at least 10 former members of Buhari’s cabinet are preparing to join the SDP.

“What they’re waiting for is the finalisation of the party structure in their respective states,” the source said.

Investigations reveal that key figures who are also planning to defect include former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Adamu; ex-Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; and former Senate President, Ahmed Lawan.

Former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, a prominent ally of Buhari, made the first move by officially joining the SDP on Monday. Citing concerns about the APC’s trajectory, he stated: “Developments in the last two years confirm that those who currently control and run the APC do not desire to acknowledge, much less address, the party’s unhealthy situation.

“I have raised concerns in private and, more recently, in public regarding the party’s capricious trajectory. Therefore, at this point in my political journey, I have come to the conclusion that I must seek another political platform to pursue the progressive values I cherish,” he said.

El-Rufai, a vocal critic of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, also revealed that he consulted Buhari before making his decision to leave the ruling party.

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“I left the APC with his (Buhari’s) full knowledge. I visited him on a Friday and informed him of my decision to leave the party because I involve and consult with him on all my matters,” he told BBC Hausa.

CPC Bloc Distances Itself from APC
El-Rufai’s defection appears to have triggered a larger exodus, particularly among members of the former Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), a party founded by Buhari before it merged with others to form the APC in 2013.

Following his move, former senator Ahmad Kaita and a member of the House of Representatives from Katsina also joined the SDP. Other notable figures who have followed suit include former Kaduna State commissioners for Agriculture, Justice, Health, and Education, as well as the state’s former Head of Service.

Additionally, Adamu Modibbo, the former APC Campaign Secretary in Gombe State during the 2015 general elections, has switched to the SDP, now serving as its chairman in the state.

Former APC Publicity Secretary in Borno State, Abdulaziz Galadima, also confirmed his departure, stating:

“The party has deviated from the principles and ideology on which it was founded. Many original CPC members will leave the APC for the SDP or another party.”

Coalition Talks Gain Momentum
Sources suggest that the movement extends beyond former CPC members, with prominent politicians from the PDP, ACN, and APC reportedly engaged in coalition talks.

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A close aide of Malami, speaking anonymously, hinted at broader political objectives, saying:
“It is not about ousting Tinubu in 2027 but about our conviction that we have better and more credible constitutional alternatives to offer Nigerians in governance.”

Among those reportedly involved in the coalition discussions are former governors Rotimi Amaechi, Emeka Ihedioha, Liyel Imoke, Aminu Tambuwal, and Rauf Aregbesola, along with ex-Senate President David Mark and former APC National Chairman John Odigie-Oyegun.

Growing Discontent Within APC
A senior APC chieftain in Imo State confirmed that discontent among CPC-aligned politicians is driving the movement.

“That some ministers who served under Buhari are leaving or will leave the APC is confirmed. However, they may not join the SDP, but I know they are part of the coalition movement,” he said.

He further added: “President Tinubu has mismanaged the success of our party. APC bigwigs, both in the North and South, are not happy, and the President doesn’t care. You don’t grow by reducing in size. The APC is reducing in size.”

Former Minister of Sports and Youth Development Solomon Lalong also acknowledged ongoing political discussions involving former ministers and senators.
“We are in discussions with many people across the country, including former ministers and senators. But because it is at the level of discussion, I will have to protect their identities,” he said.

Lalong attributed the dissatisfaction to Tinubu’s leadership style, warning:

“This problem Tinubu found himself in is self-inflicted. It is caused by his ego. He is an egoistic personality who sees himself as an emperor.”

Aregbesola’s Political Future

While Rauf Aregbesola’s camp has remained tight-lipped, sources indicate that the former Minister of Interior has been approached to join the SDP.
A close associate revealed: “I can’t confirm whether it is the SDP we are joining, but I know there is an ongoing political movement. Some ministers and former APC officials are involved.”

The insider suggested that this movement could eventually lead to a broader coalition ahead of the 2027 elections.

10 ex-Buhari’s ministers to dump APC for SDP

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SDP warns Kaduna gov against persecuting El-Rufai

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2 days ago

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March 15, 2025

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Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai

SDP warns Kaduna gov against persecuting El-Rufai

In a sudden turn of fortune, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) is blowing hot, warning the Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, against persecuting its members, including the former governor of the state, Nasir el-Rufai.

This is a dramatic shift from years of existence as one of the ‘mushroom’ political parties in the country. The positive turn of events follows defectors the party is receiving, including el-Rufai and his appointees.

The party is also taking part in serious coalition talks with the big two in the opposition—the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party.

Following its renewed popularity, the party on Friday issued a strongly worded statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Ambassador Rufus Aiyenigba, against the mistreatment of its members, accusing Uba Sani of hounding them for defecting from the governor’s party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The statement, which is widely being shared by Sani’s predecessor, Nasir el-Rufai, who referred to the SDP as “our party,” said it wishes to bring to the attention of all Nigerians that the party has been informed about plans to suppress opposition figures to instil fear in political circles.

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The party says this strategy aims to deter further defections to “our party by using intimidation tactics.”

It comes as el-Rufai defected last Monday to the SDP from the APC, laying the groundwork for his commissioners and other top appointees to leave the APC to the SDP. Some of those who have defected have allegedly been arrested, according to el-Rufai.

However, the SDP said it has received reliable information indicating that the APC is “concerned about the mounting momentum of our party. In response, the APC has decided to leverage its governmental control to fabricate criminal charges against our members.”

The party notes that “our sources reveal that the persecution will commence with one of our prominent leaders, Malam Nasir El-Rufai. The government is planning to file multiple charges against him in Abuja and Kaduna imminently.

“In preparation for this, we have also learnt that the Federal Government has instructed its agencies to prevent Malam Nasir El-Rufai from leaving the country,” the party alleges.

It says in Kaduna, the state government appears to be following the federal strategy of targeting opposition leaders.

The administration under Uba Sani, the party says, has reportedly “abducted one of our state leaders, Ja’afaru Sani, utilising the police unit Operation Fushin Kada.

“This unit, which is supposed to protect citizens and their freedoms, has been misused to oppress political opponents.

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“Ja’afaru Sani has been taken before a magistrate, where the state government went to procure an order to remand him in prison,” the party says in the statement.

It emphasises that “as was done to Bashir Saidu on December 31, 2024, Ja’afaru Sani was remanded by the magistrate for alleged money laundering.

“This is a matter that is not within the jurisdiction of either a state court or the Nigeria Police. When the gimmick was rolled out in December 2024, it unfolded with a Kaduna magistrate remanding Bashir Saidu in prison till 21 January 2025 on similar charges.

“It was the precursor to Bashir Saidu spending 50 days in prison. Such is the naked attempt to deploy the police and the judiciary to detain and imprison our leaders in Kaduna.”

The SDP says it is profoundly dismayed by these flagrant and undemocratic methods in a democracy that should be advancing after 25 years of sustained efforts.

Democratic norms, it argues, dictate that a sitting government should respond to the growing momentum of opposition through a contest of ideas and improved performance, not through cowardly persecution that is characteristic of tyrannical regimes.

The party says it is imperative to note that the APC occupies office today because its leaders were not targeted during their years in opposition.

It stresses that if former governments had resorted to imprisoning them and burdening them with multiple charges across various courts, the APC would not be in its current position.

The SDP therefore calls on all Nigerians to stand against these undemocratic practices and advocate for a mature democratic process where political disagreements are resolved through dialogue and performance, not through oppression and intimidation.

It emphasises that even in the USA, an advanced democratic nation, “President Donald Trump was severally and severely persecuted and vilified by the political establishment, but all that did not diminish him nor detract from his popularity. He weathered the storm and got re-elected to power.

“The ongoing victimisation of the SDP and its members by the authorities amounts to nothing more than enhancing and boosting the public rating of the party as the bastion of true hope for national retrieval and better lives for Nigerians, going forward,” the party concludes.

SDP warns Kaduna gov against persecuting El-Rufai

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2027: Southern Kaduna group rejects El-Rufai, supports Tinubu

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3 days ago

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March 14, 2025

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Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

2027: Southern Kaduna group rejects El-Rufai, supports Tinubu

The Southern Kaduna Support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured the president of block votes in future elections, citing his administration’s support for the region.

The group’s pledge comes in response to the defection of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and his reported efforts to form a coalition against the current administration.

In a statement issued by its National Coordinator, Dr. Joseph G. Ibrahim, and Director of Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Victor Bobai Mathew, the group said President Tinubu’s emergence has changed the fortunes of Southern Kaduna.

“With President Tinubu’s leadership and the collaborative efforts of Governor Uba Sani, we have witnessed transformational policies that have given us renewed hope for a more secure and prosperous future,” the statement read.

The group stated that Tinubu’s appointment of General Christopher Gwabin Musa as the Chief of Defence Staff was a demonstration of trust in the people of Southern Kaduna.

“This appointment is a testament to our region’s contributions to nation-building and a strategic move toward ensuring security and stability,” it noted.

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Among the key infrastructural and security interventions credited to the Tinubu administration was the approval and construction of a military barracks in Samaru Kataf, which the group described as a “game-changer.”

“For years, Southern Kaduna was plagued by insecurity, making life unbearable for farmers, traders, and families. This permanent security presence will deter attacks, enhance safety, and restore confidence among our people,” it stated.

In the healthcare sector, the group lauded President Tinubu for approving the establishment of a Federal Medical Center in Kafanchan, describing it as a major milestone that would improve healthcare services, reduce maternal and infant mortality, and enhance the well-being of residents.

Education was also a focal point of the group’s commendation, as it celebrated the approval of the Federal University of Applied Sciences in Kachia.

“For decades, Southern Kaduna was marginalized in education development. This institution will provide quality education, skill development, and create employment opportunities for our youth,” the group stated.

The group further credited President Tinubu’s leadership for improving security, allowing farmers to return to their lands, and fostering an economic revival in the region.

“The proactive security strategies by the Nigerian Armed Forces, led by General CG Musa, have ensured that farmers and business owners can operate without fear.

“With improved security and infrastructure, Southern Kaduna is experiencing a business revival. Traders, entrepreneurs, and investors now have the confidence to expand their businesses, leading to job creation and economic prosperity,” it added.

Expressing confidence in the government, the group reaffirmed its commitment to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), stating that supporting the party at both state and federal levels was a demonstration of unity, patriotism, and commitment to national progress.

The group also praised Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani for his dedication to the development of Southern Kaduna, particularly in the areas of infrastructure and security.

“His collaboration with General CG Musa has yielded significant gains. We will continue to stand by him to ensure that he completes his good works for the state,” the group assured.

 

2027: Southern Kaduna group rejects El-Rufai, supports Tinubu

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