Posted by By JOE NWANKWO, Abuja on
As the nation moves closer to the 2007 polls, indications are rife that former military Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari may dump the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and run for next year's presidential election on the platform of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
As the nation moves closer to the 2007 polls, indications are rife that former military Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari may dump the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and run for next year's presidential election on the platform of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Counsel to Buhari and Chieftain of the ANPP, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN), stated that the General's continued stay in ANPP will depend largely on how he and his supporters are treated by the party.
According to the Senior Advocate of Nigeria, "Buhari at this time is in the ANPP. Whether he continues to stay in the party depends on how the party treats him and his supporters. If for any reason either by commission or omission, they give the impression that Buhari or his group is not welcome in the party, they will leave. They are not trees that would stand and wait for bulldozers to come and uproot. So it depends largely on the events of next two weeks"
Reacting to feelers that the PDP is wooing the former Head of state to run on the party's platform, Ahamba said :" I read the statement by PDP National Chairman, Ahmadu Ali, suggesting that they could have him as a candidate and Buhari is one hell of a candidate. But to the best of my knowledge, no offer has been made yet. They are yet to offer Buhari the party's ticket.
Best candidate
"General Buhari is the best candidate which every rational Nigerian understands, so if offers are made we will consider it, that is if the ANPP decides to push us out. Let the offer be made first, then we would give our conditions before accepting it. If they give him good conditions, he has a right to consider the options. He has no need for the PDP but the way ANPP is pushing him, they may push him to anywhere. We are all politicians. We have no permanent enemies, but permanent interests," he added.
Reacting to insinuations that Buhari had never really been in charge of governance, and that as head of state, it was General Idiagbon that was in charge, Ahamba described it as a good attribute in leadership.
"I think people misunderstand Buhari. He likes to give those who work with him opportunities to express themselves. He relies on his subordinates to act but the policy has always been his own. That is a good attribute in leadership. A person who believes in his subordinates and gives them opportunities to prove themselves should be commended."
On Igbo presidency, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria stated that what should be paramount is not the area that the next president comes from but the quality of the person. He, however, noted that apart from Governor Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia State who is in the PDP there is no other Igbo presidential candidate that has shown seriousness.
"My primary position on the issue of Igbo presidency is this: in my quest for a president of Igbo extraction, I am not prepared to compromise standards, and there is no ethnic boundary to bad governance.
Consequently, if an Igbo presidential candidate emerges and I cannot vouch for his ability to rule this country, I, Mike Ahamba, though an Igbo will not support the candidate.
He has to be a candidate found to be straight forward with good reputation. He has to be a person who can give the office prestige and not somebody after ruling this country no other Igbo man would be allowed to the presidency again. As far as I am concerned, it is only Orji Uzor Kalu who has shown seriousness about the presidency but on the PDP ticket. Time is not on their side, the nation cannot be waiting for the Igbo," he added.
Impeach Obasanjo, Atiku
Commenting on the imbroglio between President Olusegun Obasanjo and Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria called for the impeachment of the duo, noting that their actions amount to gross misconduct.
He said "If I have my way, some of them should go because what they have done amounts to gross misconduct which is an impeachable offence under the constitution. They have reduced the dignity of Aso Rock and its occupants. Both of them should go, as there is no way you can impeach one and leave the other, both having been involved anyway.
"Without prejudice to the allegations, the actors [ the President and Vice President] having come to this farce, coming to this verbal war in the open, shows that Nigeria is not safe under them as they cannot even come together to plan on how to take security steps should the nation be invaded by a foreign nation. They can't consult confidentially right now and that is very dangerous for Nigeria as a nation. If I were a member of the National Assembly I would ask that the two of them should go" he stressed.
Ahamba called on the authority to deal with anybody found corrupt by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) according to the laws of the land, noting that in doing so, due process must be followed to avoid discrimination.
According to him" evil has been allowed to thrive in this country because people who do evil are allowed to go free. If any of the governors indicted by the EFCC is found culpable and has abused the confidence reposed in him by the people, the law must take its full course to serve as a deterrent to others. So that when people go into public office they should think more of being part of history than being corrupt and touted to be among the richest Nigerians.
Anybody who wants to be super rich should go and make his own money and not steal public funds. Public office should be all about service to the people and not a short cut to riches and fame" he opined.