IT
WAS a very different Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who was in Ibadan to meet with a
frontline politician in the capital city of Oyo State recently.
Unlike his usually boisterous, self confident mien, former President Obasanjo appeared humble, perhaps for the first time, in his life.
During the Ibadan visit, last, the Owu Chief appeared to have a very good reason to be worried as it was obvious that he is, perhaps, faced with a formidable fight that could be as immense as the horrifying experience he had in prison during the reign of General Sani Abacha.
In Ibadan, he made his equally worried friend, a leader of an opposition party
and former governor of Oyo State who received him along with political
associates, to know that things were really being made to turn bad for him at
the moment and blamed President Goodluck Jonathan whom he called unprintable
names for his woes.Unlike his usually boisterous, self confident mien, former President Obasanjo appeared humble, perhaps for the first time, in his life.
During the Ibadan visit, last, the Owu Chief appeared to have a very good reason to be worried as it was obvious that he is, perhaps, faced with a formidable fight that could be as immense as the horrifying experience he had in prison during the reign of General Sani Abacha.
He hinted that the president, whom he committed
everything to help into power, has bitten the fingers that fed him.
A source in the gathering quoted the former president as saying saying: “Jonathan... has betrayed me.”
According to the former president, it was unthinkable that the president could turn against him after all he had done for him, bringing him practically from obscurity to limelight to become the president. He was said to have vowed to do everything in his power to ensure his discomfort does not continue in 2015.
At that stage, the political leaders moved to the inner recesses of the house for a strategy session which, obviously have to do with how to engage the impending battle.
Sources from the meeting said the former president was not leaving anything to chance in the struggle to engage Jonathan squarely, in the 2015 race.
According to the sources, in his calculations, the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) would likely, field Jonathan as its candidate for the 2015 Presidential election, in spite of any opposition within the party.
The President, Obasanjo was cited to have said, has pocketed the national executive members of the party. Hence, they will do his bidding any day.
Consequently, the only option left to stop Jonathan is for politicians of like minds in PDP as well as the opposition to come under one umbrella to stop him.
It was learnt that a major plank of Obasanjo and his associates disagreement with the President, which will also form the thrust of their campaign against his candidacy in 2015, is an alleged non-performance of the Jonathan administration, especially, in the area of security, in spite of the immense amount of resources available to it. Besides, the former President is reportedly, miffed that the President does not consult him on crucial issues neither does he listen to his advice when offered.
What is said to have pained the former Obasanjo most is the attempt by the Jonathan administration to discredit most of his administration's programmes some of which had been discontinued while the impression is also being created that he was responsible for the woes of the country.
The retired army General was said to be particularly, unhappy with the loans Jonathan's administration was taking, only half a decade after he (Obasanjo) had cleared the nation's huge debt and received debt forgiveness from creditor countries. He was also said to have complained of the growing spate of insecurity in the land especially with the macabre rave of Boko Haram attacks in up country.
All these blames he was said to have laid squarely on Jonathan's shoulders whom he described as somewhat weak and undecisive.
He was said to have lamented the dire situation which the PDP in the South West found itself, currently, stressing that it was a ploy by the President to ensure that the party in the zone which championed his emergence in 2010 is kept perpetually in disarray to prevent it from providing a credible opposition to his re-election bid within the fold.
The former president was particularly piqued that despite the fact that it was the South West that was instrumental to his rise into power since 2010, the zone had nothing to show for bracing all odds to ensure his success.
According to the former president, the zone is nowhere to be found in the current political calculations of the country. Hence in places where decisions that affect the existence of the nation are taken, the highest decision levels at the executive, legislative and judiciary arms of government, the South West is not represented. He added that the same thing obtains at the top management level in the federal civil service and even in the military top brass where they have become the underdog.
This development, he noted, is further worsened by the fact that in the entire South West, there is no high-ranking political figure in office that could serve as rallying point for it's PDP chieftains to counter the antics of the opposition in the zone.
As a result, he said the zone was left at the mercy of the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria, (ACN) which has been given free reign to roam the zone such that it had the temerity to be broaching the idea of a regional exclusion in the zone.
He specifically, blamed President Jonathan for this development, as he allowed the North to hijack the position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives which, according to Obasanjo, was allocated to the South West zone.
The former President reasoned that if Jonathan was keen on retaining the equation, he could have stopped them in order not to allow the South West to be relegated to the background in the national political equation.
He therefore deemed it a game by Jonathan to keep the zone down so that he can use it for his own advantage.
Consequently, Obasanjo is said to be forging an alliance with the north, preying on that zone's disdain and disenchantment with the Jonathan administration. Sources said the former president has been criss-crossing the country, especially, parts of the north, holding consultations with leaders across board on the way forward.
He is said to be touting the idea that the Presidency should go to the north in 2015, while already shopping for a credible candidate of northern root that would confront Jonathan.
If he succeeds and the North backs his initiative, this will be one of the rare times in Nigeria's post-independence history that the two regions will broker a political alliance.
It is yet to be seen how far the former president can go given the fact that most of the people he has been holding consultations with tend to be cautious about jumping into his wagon, considering especially, the way he dealt with the north during his eight years in power.
Indeed, many of the northern elders tend to read the current situation as some kind of nemesis that is catching up with the former President whom they believed betrayed them in 1999 after they had helped him into power in spite of spirited opposition from his people in the South West and the South East who did not want him as president or had better candidates to push.
Some of them even queried his credentials to condemn Jonathan for non-performance and his hints of corruption in the current administration, insisting that he was not better when he was in power.
Perhaps more damning for the ex-president is that some of the people he had contacted within the PDP and had reportedly, touted for replace Jonathan as President in 2015, have come out to turn the idea down. One of such persons, the governor of Rivers State, yesterday disclosed that the story being spread that he is going to run in 2015 as a vice presidential candidate is not true as he habours no such ambition. Similarly, others have said in several fora that they had no agreement with him.
The Nigerian Compass learnt that some of them, mostly serving governors, were said to have towed the path of the Rivers governor, in order not to incur the wrath of President Jonathan, who may appear lame but is capable of acting decisively, when matters get to a head.
Those who flee from being counted were said to have cited the cases of former governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori, who is now languishing in jail in London on corruption charges as well as former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva, who was denied the PDP ticket for a second term in office over irreconcilable differences with the President.
President Jonathan may also have scored a bulls-eye against Obasanjo during his last media chat when he nailed the former president in a succint refrence to the oddities of the invasion of Odi, Bayelsa State by the military during the administration of the former president, saying only women, children and old people were killed instead of the militants who were the targets.
The reference to Odi, many analyst note, is a veiled but unmistakeable threat that the ex-president may be dragged before the world court of justice for war crimes if he does not allow Jonathan a peaceful reign.
The coming weeks will definitely witness more of the battles ahead. Whether the former president still has the guts and courage to continue to confront Jonathan after this is yet to be seen.
A source in the gathering quoted the former president as saying saying: “Jonathan... has betrayed me.”
According to the former president, it was unthinkable that the president could turn against him after all he had done for him, bringing him practically from obscurity to limelight to become the president. He was said to have vowed to do everything in his power to ensure his discomfort does not continue in 2015.
At that stage, the political leaders moved to the inner recesses of the house for a strategy session which, obviously have to do with how to engage the impending battle.
Sources from the meeting said the former president was not leaving anything to chance in the struggle to engage Jonathan squarely, in the 2015 race.
According to the sources, in his calculations, the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) would likely, field Jonathan as its candidate for the 2015 Presidential election, in spite of any opposition within the party.
The President, Obasanjo was cited to have said, has pocketed the national executive members of the party. Hence, they will do his bidding any day.
Consequently, the only option left to stop Jonathan is for politicians of like minds in PDP as well as the opposition to come under one umbrella to stop him.
It was learnt that a major plank of Obasanjo and his associates disagreement with the President, which will also form the thrust of their campaign against his candidacy in 2015, is an alleged non-performance of the Jonathan administration, especially, in the area of security, in spite of the immense amount of resources available to it. Besides, the former President is reportedly, miffed that the President does not consult him on crucial issues neither does he listen to his advice when offered.
What is said to have pained the former Obasanjo most is the attempt by the Jonathan administration to discredit most of his administration's programmes some of which had been discontinued while the impression is also being created that he was responsible for the woes of the country.
The retired army General was said to be particularly, unhappy with the loans Jonathan's administration was taking, only half a decade after he (Obasanjo) had cleared the nation's huge debt and received debt forgiveness from creditor countries. He was also said to have complained of the growing spate of insecurity in the land especially with the macabre rave of Boko Haram attacks in up country.
All these blames he was said to have laid squarely on Jonathan's shoulders whom he described as somewhat weak and undecisive.
He was said to have lamented the dire situation which the PDP in the South West found itself, currently, stressing that it was a ploy by the President to ensure that the party in the zone which championed his emergence in 2010 is kept perpetually in disarray to prevent it from providing a credible opposition to his re-election bid within the fold.
The former president was particularly piqued that despite the fact that it was the South West that was instrumental to his rise into power since 2010, the zone had nothing to show for bracing all odds to ensure his success.
According to the former president, the zone is nowhere to be found in the current political calculations of the country. Hence in places where decisions that affect the existence of the nation are taken, the highest decision levels at the executive, legislative and judiciary arms of government, the South West is not represented. He added that the same thing obtains at the top management level in the federal civil service and even in the military top brass where they have become the underdog.
This development, he noted, is further worsened by the fact that in the entire South West, there is no high-ranking political figure in office that could serve as rallying point for it's PDP chieftains to counter the antics of the opposition in the zone.
As a result, he said the zone was left at the mercy of the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria, (ACN) which has been given free reign to roam the zone such that it had the temerity to be broaching the idea of a regional exclusion in the zone.
He specifically, blamed President Jonathan for this development, as he allowed the North to hijack the position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives which, according to Obasanjo, was allocated to the South West zone.
The former President reasoned that if Jonathan was keen on retaining the equation, he could have stopped them in order not to allow the South West to be relegated to the background in the national political equation.
He therefore deemed it a game by Jonathan to keep the zone down so that he can use it for his own advantage.
Consequently, Obasanjo is said to be forging an alliance with the north, preying on that zone's disdain and disenchantment with the Jonathan administration. Sources said the former president has been criss-crossing the country, especially, parts of the north, holding consultations with leaders across board on the way forward.
He is said to be touting the idea that the Presidency should go to the north in 2015, while already shopping for a credible candidate of northern root that would confront Jonathan.
If he succeeds and the North backs his initiative, this will be one of the rare times in Nigeria's post-independence history that the two regions will broker a political alliance.
It is yet to be seen how far the former president can go given the fact that most of the people he has been holding consultations with tend to be cautious about jumping into his wagon, considering especially, the way he dealt with the north during his eight years in power.
Indeed, many of the northern elders tend to read the current situation as some kind of nemesis that is catching up with the former President whom they believed betrayed them in 1999 after they had helped him into power in spite of spirited opposition from his people in the South West and the South East who did not want him as president or had better candidates to push.
Some of them even queried his credentials to condemn Jonathan for non-performance and his hints of corruption in the current administration, insisting that he was not better when he was in power.
Perhaps more damning for the ex-president is that some of the people he had contacted within the PDP and had reportedly, touted for replace Jonathan as President in 2015, have come out to turn the idea down. One of such persons, the governor of Rivers State, yesterday disclosed that the story being spread that he is going to run in 2015 as a vice presidential candidate is not true as he habours no such ambition. Similarly, others have said in several fora that they had no agreement with him.
The Nigerian Compass learnt that some of them, mostly serving governors, were said to have towed the path of the Rivers governor, in order not to incur the wrath of President Jonathan, who may appear lame but is capable of acting decisively, when matters get to a head.
Those who flee from being counted were said to have cited the cases of former governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori, who is now languishing in jail in London on corruption charges as well as former governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva, who was denied the PDP ticket for a second term in office over irreconcilable differences with the President.
President Jonathan may also have scored a bulls-eye against Obasanjo during his last media chat when he nailed the former president in a succint refrence to the oddities of the invasion of Odi, Bayelsa State by the military during the administration of the former president, saying only women, children and old people were killed instead of the militants who were the targets.
The reference to Odi, many analyst note, is a veiled but unmistakeable threat that the ex-president may be dragged before the world court of justice for war crimes if he does not allow Jonathan a peaceful reign.
The coming weeks will definitely witness more of the battles ahead. Whether the former president still has the guts and courage to continue to confront Jonathan after this is yet to be seen.
Source:
Compass
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