Politics

Buhari’s Body Language Unsettles Osinbajo, Tinubu, Amaechi, Others

Published

3 years ago

April 14, 2022

President Muhammadu Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari’s body language as to his preferred candidate for the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has unsettled aspirants including Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, among others.

It was gathered that the inability of the aspirants to properly deduce the direction of the president delayed the declaration of some of the aspirants including Osinbajo and Amaechi. While Osinbajo declared on Monday, Amaechi did same at the weekend.

Starting with Tinubu, the presidential aspirants of the ruling party had sought for the blessings of the president before declaring for the race.

The lack of clarity on the president’s direction, Daily Trust reports, is fuelling agitation among the aspirants and their supporters as the deadline for the conduct of the political parties’ primaries approaches.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had issued a deadline of June 3, 2022, for political parties to conduct their primaries.

So far, eight aspirants in the ruling party have indicated interest in the president’s seat. They include; Tinubu, Osinbajo, Amaechi, Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State, Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, business tycoon Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, a former governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha as well as Ihechukwu Dallas Chima (IDC).

Impeccable sources around the presidency told this paper that Buhari did not object to the plans by all the aspirants to vie for the presidency but that he was keeping close to his chest his preference among the contenders.

The president had on January 5, this year during an exclusive interview with Channels TV, said he does not care who succeeds him.

His words: “2023 is not my problem, I don’t care who succeeds me, let the person come, whoever the person is.” He also declined to mention his favourite, saying if the person is named, he would be eliminated.

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One of the sources said the president’s action was causing ripples among the aspirants, their supporters and critical stakeholders of the ruling party.

The source, a founding member of the APC, said, unlike the party positions, the presidential candidate of the party cannot be singlehandedly handpicked by the president.

“What I can tell you is that the scenario that brought Abdullahi Adamu, where the president handpicked him cannot be repeated now. The primaries must be conducted for the party to emerge victoriously in 2023.

“Mr President is being mindful of this fact, hence is being careful. In the build up to the 2015 general elections, even when key stakeholders knew that the party ticket was for him (Buhari), we still conducted primaries in Lagos, where he defeated Atiku, Kwankwaso, Bukola (Saraki), Okorocha and others,” the source said.

However, another source said the president seems not to be conformable with the candidatures of Osinbajo and Tinubu.

“This is my reading of him but let me tell you, the odds favour Asiwaju, power is not given, it is taken. He will pick the ticket,” the source said.

President in a tight corner

Sources said despite his open declaration that he does not care who succeeds him, the president seems to be in a tight corner.

One of them said those who supported him when he needed it most and their supporters think this is the payback time.

While those with Tinubu are saying the president owed them in view of the role played by the former Lagos governor in the victories of Buhari in 2015 and 2019, those in the camp of the vice president believed that his emergence as the running mate did the magic in the 2015 polls.

Recall that Buhari had contested thrice before emerging victory in 2015.

The vice president’s supporters are also saying that as the number two person in the administration, he should be given the right of first refusal for continuity of the relative success of the APC administration.

On their part, those in the camp of Amaechi, the former governor of Rivers State are saying that their candidate should be considered in view of the role he played as the director-general of the Buhari’s campaign organisation.

How Obasanjo picked successor

Daily Trust reports that in the build up to the 2007 general elections, former President Olusegun Obasanjo allowed all the aspirants under the then ruling party, PDP to contest.

The key aspirants at that time were sitting governors, Peter Odili (Rivers), Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi (Kaduna), Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa) and Donald Duke (Cross River), among others to promote their candidatures. But before the presidential primaries of the PDP, Obasanjo threw his weight behind late Umaru Musa Yar’adua who was rounding off his tenure as governor of Katsina State even though he had not indicated interest in the race.

Soon, Obasanjo mobilised the state apparatus to ensure Yar’adua picked the party’s ticket and won the election. The late Yar’adua had during his inauguration accepted the fact the election that brought him to power was flawed.

Analysts weigh Buhari’s body language

Responding to the issue, a Political Scientist from the University of Ilorin, Dr Isiaq Atanda Abdulwaheed, described President Buhari’s disposition as “very political” and may spell doom for the party.

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According to him, “What I think everyone should know for now is the fact that President Buhari has not come out to endorse anybody for the race and this is highly political and shows that he is keenly interested in whoever succeeds him.

“Now, another thing we should learn from this is that if care is not taken, Buhari’s politics may lead to some caucus breaking out of the ruling party.

“The reason is that, with the way things are going, if the VP, Yemi Osinbajo, gets the APC ticket ahead of Tinubu, which is likely now in the present circumstance, though the dynamics may change along the line, then the party will be facing a very serious issue.

“The implication is that if the opposition PDP produce a strong candidate with wide acceptability of the people, there is every tendency that they may have a free day during the poll to produce the next president in a violence-free election,” he said.

A public affairs analyst, Comrade Achike Chude warned of a possible implosion in the APC with the number of presidential aspirants that have so far emerged.

Chude, who is Deputy National President of the Joint Action Front, a civil society coalition, said the decision of the president not to endorse any candidate could be counterproductive.

According to him, the situation is still very complex as all the aspirants that have so far emerged believe the president owes them his support.

He said, “Our observation of politics in Nigeria is that when candidates going for various political positions go to traditional rulers for endorsement, they bless them and wish them well. In most cases, they do not tell them, ‘I will support you.’

“This is what we are seeing with the president. If the president has a candidate, which he has told us he has if you remember during a media chat, he said, “He has his favourite but he is not going to expose him because he doesn’t want him to be eliminated.

“Now, the debate over that statement was whether the elimination is physical elimination or political elimination. At least, he told us he has a favourite. Now that favourite might be Tinubu, he might be the Vice-President, he might be Pastor Tunde Bakare who has said clearly that he is number 16th President and Buhari is number 15, that when Buhari leaves, he will step in. We don’t know whether it is any of them or any other person that comes out from the APC.”

APC set to release timetable for primaries

Meanwhile, the APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, told Daily Trust in a telephone interview last night that the party was yet to fix a date for the presidential primaries.

“That information is not available for now, but in a short while, the party will release the details,” he said.

A party source told this paper that the leadership of the ruling party under Senator Abdullahi Adamu is working on the timetable.

DAILY TRUST

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Politics

Africa’s democracy is govt by small for small number of people – Obasanjo

Published

15 hours ago

March 25, 2025

Trends Admin

Africa’s democracy is govt by small for small number of people – Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has advanced reasons for what he called abysmal failure of democracy in Africa.

According to him, African presidents work with a clique and wield enormous powers with little or no resistance from perpetuating illegalities and abuse of office.

The ex-President said the democracy being practised in Africa does not aligned with the people’s values, culture, and way of life.

Obasanjo said spoke on Monday at a colloquium in Abuja to mark the 60th birthday of Emeka Ihedioha, a former governor of Imo State.

The former Nigerian leader, who chaired the event, referencing Abraham Lincoln’s definition of democracy as “government of the people, by the people, for the people,” said the system should work for all citizens rather than a privileged few.

He however wondered if African countries are practising true democracy or only adopting Western Liberal democracy.

He said, “If you are talking about democracy failing in Africa, democracy in Africa has failed. And why has it failed?

“Because in context and in content, it is not Africa. It does not have any aspect of our culture, our way of life, what we stand for, what we believe.

“Today, we have democracy, which is the government of a small number of people, by a small number of people over a large number of people who are deprived of what they need to have in life. That is not democracy that will endure.

“It is ‘I am because I can grab.’ What sort of democracy brings you, and you grab everything and then illegally, corruptly, and you say go to court? When you know that even in the court, you cannot get justice.

“It’s not that democracy is failing, democracy is dying and if we are going to make democracy not to die, we have to look at democracy in the context and in the content of Africa. I hope that we will get to that stage so that democracy which will deliver will be the democracy that we will have in Africa.”

Obasanjo was Nigeria’s military ruler from 1976 to 1979 and democratically elected president from 1999 to 2007.

Politics

Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai’s coalition can’t unseat Tinubu – Shekarau

Published

3 days ago

March 23, 2025

Trends Admin

Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau

Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai’s coalition can’t unseat Tinubu – Shekarau

Former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, has cast doubt on the ability of a newly formed opposition coalition to unseat President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 elections.

Shekarau described the alliance, which includes former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate Peter Obi, and ex-Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, as a gathering of individuals with personal political ambitions rather than a structured and unified opposition front.

His remarks came just two days after the coalition’s formation was announced, with the stated goal of challenging Tinubu’s administration.

In a statement by his spokesperson, Dr. Sule Yau, Shekarau remarked, “This is just a gathering of certain individuals with political ambitions; none of them has officially consulted their party leadership.”

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He further argued that a coalition featuring prominent figures does not necessarily equate to an effective political alliance.

“The coalition of opposition figures is a good development, as seen in their recent meeting under what they call an opposition alliance. However, none of the key figures involved represents their party leadership,” Shekarau stated.

Emphasizing the legal framework for political mergers, he pointed out that only registered parties could formally unite, making the recent gathering an informal arrangement rather than an officially recognized coalition.

Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai’s coalition can’t unseat Tinubu – Shekarau

Politics

PDP gives condition to back Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai in 2027

Published

3 days ago

March 23, 2025

Trends Admin

Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi

PDP gives condition to back Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai in 2027

Although the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hasn’t made its official position known on the coalition being put together by some key leaders of the opposition to wrestle power from the ruling party at the federal level, All Progressives Congress (APC), and President Bola Tinubu ahead of 2027, Sunday Vanguard understands that the PDP may join forces with them on one condition: The process will not lead to its loss of identity.

The PDP was in power for 16 years before the APC dislodged it from the Presidential Villa in 2015 when then-incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan lost reelection to former President Buhari.

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, had, last week, announced his decision to join the coalition with other members of opposition parties to challenge Tinubu in the 2027 elections.

Atiku was responding to a call by a former governor of Kaduna State, Mallam El-Rufai, to key members of opposition parties in the country to come together and fight Tinubu and APC in 2027.

El-Rufai had made the call while dumping the APC for the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

In his response, the former PDP presidential candidate confirmed that he, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, Mr Peter Obi, and El-Rufai, among others, had kick-started a movement aimed at defeating Tinubu’s APC in the 2027 elections.

He spoke at a press conference organized by Nigeria’s key opposition leaders and political stakeholders to discuss the President’s controversial declaration of state of emergency in Rivers State.

When journalists asked whether the emerging coalition would be the major opposition force against the APC in 2027, Atiku did not mince words.
“Yes,” he declared.

Clarity

Sources within the PDP told Sunday Vanguard at the weekend that the party will expect the former presidential candidate to give clarity to his decision soon.

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A member of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), who spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter was “yet to be discussed at the official level,” said, “We expect him to shed more light on his decision as we proceed.

“For now, he is still a high ranking member of our party the PDP.

“We have been following his public statements and engagements and he hasn’t announced to anyone that he is leaving or has left our party.

“Yes, he left the party on two previous occasions over the past two decades -first to join Tinubu’s Action Congress (AC) to contest the 2007 presidential election; and in 2013 or thereabouts to join others to form the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“Note, however, that on each of these occasions he returned to the PDP.

“Now, whether he is planning to leave to join others or he wants others to come join us to beat the APC rigging machine in 2027, only he can explain. “For now, from my interactions with members of his team, one thing is clear, this time around, Atiku’s move is a strategic step towards unifying opposition forces against the ruling APC.

‘Significant shift’

“His announcement of the formation of a coalition signals a significant shift in Nigeria’s political landscape, as opposition leaders seek to present a united front against the current administration.

“The proposed coalition is expected to bring together key political parties and stakeholders, including prominent figures like Mr Peter Obi of the Labour Party.

“It’s worth noting that Atiku’s decision might not be universally accepted within the PDP, as some members may have different opinions on the best strategy to challenge the APC in 2027.

“Nevertheless, Atiku’s move demonstrates his commitment to opposing the current administration and his willingness to work with other opposition parties to achieve this goal.”

Identity

The party chieftain further explained that a majority of leaders and members of the PDP are resolute in their desire to ensure that the party retains its identity.

According to him, a former governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido, spoke the minds of most leaders and members of the PDP when he dismissed El-Rufai’s call to dump the party and join the SDP.

Lamido said in an interview, “The party we formed, the PDP, is the one that gave birth to El-Rufai. You’re not enough to make us leave the PDP.

“He (El-Rufai) once said that there are no elders in Nigerian politics, but now he is calling on us to join him in the SDP.”

Lamido equally questioned El-Rufai’s motive for dumping the APC for the SDP and his motivation for seeking power.

“Leadership is done with patience and vision, and doing things for the peace of the followers and the country as a whole”, he said.

While restating his loyalty to the PDP, Lamido said the party which he helped to form hasn’t done anything wrong to warrant him leaving to join another.

His views resonated with another leader and foundation member of the PDP, Chief Bode George, who has told whoever cares to listen that he is in the PDP to stay.