My fear for Jonathan

My fear for Jonathan – Dan Musa

Details: Category: Politics; Published on Friday, 02 April 2010 04:27; Written by Admin; Hits: 1141

Botched Third Republic Deputy Senate President, Mamman Abubakar Dan Musa, says President Umaru Yar’Adua and Acting President Goodluck Jonathan may receive unfair judgment of posterity if they completely succumb to the cabal surrounding them.

Dan Musa, who was also Second Republic Speaker of the old Kaduna State House of Assembly told Daily Sun in an exclusive interview in his Katsina country home: “He (Jonathan) should learn from the misfortunes of others, who when they found themselves in power, they regarded themselves as a tin god, as if their days would not come to an end.

“Even if he takes from Obasanjo, even Yar’Adua, General Babangida, Abacha, Gowon, Shagari and Buhari, really nobody can take Nigeria for a ride. “I will advise him not to succumb to this cabal whose only interest is to make personal fortune out of the positions they find themselves.” The erstwhile stalwart of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP)-turned chieftain of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), who painted a portrait of Nigeria as a troubled nation, blew hot:

“The cabal surrounding him (Jonathan) will not help him. Nigerians are tired of this irresponsible leadership.”
The elder statesman called for Yar’Adua’s resignation and spoke on other issues. Excerpts:
President Umar Yar’Adua has been missing from public view since last November, what is your reaction?
“As a brother, as a Muslim and as a human being, I feel sorrow for him and I wish him speedy recovery. The only thing which I would like him to realise is that Nigeria is greater than any individual. He should just be on the good side of history and try to do something which will make history to be kind to him.

“He must ensure that peace and tranquility are restored in Nigeria. He can do that if he, actually feels he no longer in all sincerity, can’t discharge his official duties as expected. Nigeria is a very complex and difficult country even under normal situation and we are not in a normal situation.”

2011, Jonathan under pressure?
“If Nigerians are determined that this time around, their votes must count, a President or Acting President would not make a difference. It is only the determination of Nigerians to stand up against injustice and say enough is enough.
“If Nigerians mobilise themselves or the political class really stops to be selfish and work for the interest of the people and mobilise Nigerians to say no, enough is enough this time around, our votes must count, the President or Acting President as I told you, can’t make a difference.

“If 2007 is something to learn from, you have seen how usurpers got power but they did not have peace but they just messed up the country. For 2011, for any sensible person to think that the same thing can be repeated and Nigeria will be the same country is just fooling himself. “My advice is that he should learn from the misfortunes of others who when they found themselves in power, they regarded themselves as a tin god, as if their days would not come to an end. Even if he takes from Obasanjo, even Yar’Adua, General Babangida, Abacha, Gowon, Shagari and Buhari, really, nobody can take Nigeria for a ride. I will advise him not to succumb to this cabal whose only interest is to make personal fortune out of the positions they find themselves. He should focus in making a difference in the lives of Nigerians within a short time so that history will be fair to him.

“If he is persuaded by these professional opportunists and he agrees to contest, really he will be disappointed and he will only have himself to blame. If he knows what is happening to the ministers he dropped from his cabinet, especially in Katsina State, people who they helped now run away from them. So, he should be careful. “The cabal surrounding him will not really help him. Nigerians are tired of this irresponsible leadership.”

Save Nigeria Group (SNG)
“Although, I am not a member of SNG, I share their stand on the issues confronting Nigerians. These present office holders are holding Nigerians to ransom. In the first place, in 2007 nobody really elected them into office. Since then, they have been doing whatever they like. The result is that the standing of Nigeria in international community has gone down so low.

“That is why Libyan leader, Mamman Gaddafi, can call for the division of Nigeria into Muslim and Christian states. If Nigeria really has not gone down so deep, Gaddafi wouldn’t have dared because he knows that Nigeria is not Liberia, is not Sierra Leone and is not Niger. But because of the situation in which these so-called leaders have put us, he can talk any nonsense.

“Really, if care is not taken, anarchy would soon set in, in Nigeria. You can observe that the South-East Governors recently met with the Acting President and among the issues they raised was the issue of security in their states. The situation in their states has reached a point where the wealthy can longer attend church services, marriage and burial ceremonies. Most of their wealthy people have relocated to Abuja. Gangs of criminals have taken over.

“The same thing is happening here even in the North. Now, in Katsina State, all the local government areas bordering Zamfara State, you know, the Fulani criminal gangs have taken over. Common citizens cannot transact business without the fear of being robbed. They have to organise themselves, pay protection fees for Yan Banga and others before they can be accompanied to the border towns from where they can do their business in say Batsari. When they finish, they go in groups. Daily, kidnapping for ritual and for ransom is the order of the day.

“So, these groups of people have put our nation in such a situation and anarchy has set in already. Anything to really stop this anarchy and to reinvent new Nigeria, where all citizens irrespective of their ethnic or religious or geographical locations would have a sense of belonging is welcomed.
“When you have the type of country, which our founding fathers had envisioned, we can have peace, tranquility and regain our status in the international community. I support SNG and I think more and more responsible people should come out and support the Save Nigeria Group campaign.”

The Mega Party project.
“I am a member of the steering committee. I am a member of the plenary session of the NDM. And the mega party or whatever you call it led by Chief Olu Falae is also part of the NDM.
“All I know was that in February, I could not precisely remember the date, we were supposed to consider the two reports from the Mobilization and Contact Committe and the Strategies Committee. Recommendations were made. The majority decision was that a new political party should be floated. Then Ahmed Tinubu rose and said he didn’t have that mandate and he could not take that to his people.

It was then suggested that for the continuity and unity of the movement, let us adjourn. It was suggested that General Muhammadu Buhari, Atiku Abubakar, Bafarawa, Falae and Professor Pat Utomi should go and meet with Tinubu in Lagos and sort these things out.
“To the best of my knowledge, that is the position. We are reconvening later in Abuja. The cracks based on the so-called insistence of Buhari to be the presidential candidate are false, very false.
“Buhari is a gentleman to the core. He always stands by his words. So, they first met in I think August last year about this NDM. They all gave an undertaking that their personal ambition would be secondary. What was important was to salvage this country from the situation it is now.

“To the best of my knowledge, none of them has done anything to show bad faith on this happening. It was only the observation made by Tinubu, former governor of Lagos State, which was why the meeting was adjourned.”
General Ibrahim Babangida as successor of Yar’Adua in 2011
“I am not an American citizen, I am a Nigerian citizen. I don’t care what America’s position is. You see, our problem is self-made. If we respect ourselves and we identify our core values and do our best to stand by them, with our size and potentials, no country can dictate to us what to do.

“You can see the good leadership in Iran who can withstand pressure from another group once it is against their national interest. But because we have just destroyed ourselves, it is not a surprise that we can be dictated to.”
You are a chieftain of the Congress of Progressive Change (CPC)?
“I believe Buhari is a real leader. Since he announced that he has joined CPC, you can correctly assume that I am a member of CPC.”