Politics
By Anthony Isibor
DESPITE signing the peace accord by the presidential candidates in the February 25th presidential election, the members of the presidential campaigns council of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have engaged in ceaseless media war in their bid to market their principals and give an edge over their opponents. Unfortunately, this posture adopted by these two councils are not only in consonance with the Peace Accord signed by their principals, but it is also heating up the polity and making a mockery of the Nigerian politics.
Perhaps the last stray that triggered the debacle was the recent revelations by Michael Achimugu, a former media aid to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who has turned a whistle blower and released some information, which according to the spokespersons of the APC, were incriminating to Atiku.
Although Festus Keyamo has threatened to take legal actions against Atiku if he did not withdraw from the presidential race, the media war between the two camps appear to be gathering momentum.
For instance, Sen. Dino Malaye, spokesman for the Atiku-Okowa Presidential Campaign Council, in a Channels TV interview, alleged that the actions of the APC and the so-called whistleblower was an attempt to blackmail the PDP presidential candidate.
He added that the voice recording was doctored and that Achimugu was never employed by Atiku or his family.
Similarly, Kola Ologbondiyan, spokesperson for Atiku/Okowa Campaign Organisation told a news conference recently that the allegations by the APC camp were aimed distracting the party and divert its attention from winning the election and urged the APC to tender an unreserved apology to Abubakar over the unsubstantiated allegations.
The PDP has also alleged that the APC has formed a uniformed security squad code-named “Jagaban Army” and described the action as treasonable and called for the arrest and questioning of Tinubu, who the party spokesperson alleged to be involved in narcotics syndicate saga in the United States.
Reacting to these developments, Bayo Onanuga, Director, Media & Publicity, APC Presidential Campaign Council, asked three pertinent questions: Was the whistleblower, Michael Achimugu, who swore to an oath, employed by Atiku? Did Atiku make a scandalous confession in a telephone conversation on how he and his former boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo set up SPVs, such as Marine Float, to steal public money? Was the taped voice not Atiku’s?
Onanuga noted that rather than address the allegations of criminal money-laundering and reckless abuse of public trust levelled against Atiku Abubakar, by one of his closest aides, the PDP tried in vain to defend its presidential candidate by embarking on a puerile diversionary journey by drumming up a stale allegation against his rival.
“The issues the Nigerian people want the PDP and his candidate to address are simple,” he said.
However, the ongoing media debacle between the two camps have attracted mixed reactions from some individuals and groups.
In its reaction, the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties, CUPP, has called on the presidential candidates of the APC and the PDP to immediately withdraw from the presidential race.
In a statement signed by its Secretary General, Willy Ezugwu, the CNPP noted that the latest revelations and counter allegations against both presidential candidates have brought to the front burner urgent need to ensure that corrupt politicians and persons with connections to illicit businesses are not allowed to emerge as flag bearers of political parties in elections at all levels.
For the CNPP, both the APC and the PDP are right in their calls and counter calls for their respective presidential candidates to step aside for thorough investigation as the allegations made by a whistleblower, Michael Achimugu against Atiku Abubakar and the revelations equally made against Tinubu by award-winning journalist and researcher, David Hundeyin, bordering on international crime, specifically, trafficking in narcotics and taking proceeds of narcotics are all germane.
The CUPP therefore urged the National Assembly to immediately begin the process of amending the electoral laws to make it mandatory for political parties to get security clearance from relevant agencies, including the NDLEA, as part of the prerequisite for the acceptance of candidates’ nomination by INEC.
Noting that this has become imperative as men and women who constitute threats to national security must not be allowed to be nominated as candidates by political parties at any election.
The CUPP also agrees with Debo Ologunagba, PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, that as a result of the recent case revealed in the United States of America, where the APC Presidential Candidate forfeited the sum of $460,000, which was confirmed and found to be proceed of trafficking in narcotics; an international crime for which Nigeria, being a signatory to International Convention on trafficking in narcotic is obliged to enforce and that the effect of the conviction and forfeiture of the sum of $460,000 by Bola Tinubu shows that he is ineligible and not qualified to contest for the office of the President of Nigeria as required by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
In his reaction, Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesperson for the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, noted that both the PDP and the APC should go into competition to know who failed Nigeria the more.
According to him, what APC is talking about PDP is absolutely correct and what PDP is talking about APC is absolutely correct, what APC is talking about itself is absolutely a lie and what PDP is talking about itself is absolutely a lie.
“Two of them should step down,” he said.
Similarly, an opinion piece by Alhaji Majeed Dahiru, a renowned political analyst and veteran journalist, during an interview on Africa Independent Television’s ‘Kaakaki’ programme, assessed the campaign strategies deployed so far by the three frontline candidates vying for the topmost political office in the land, and concluded that Obi’s performance at the Chatham House in the UK has shown that he is indeed a welcome alternative to the mudslinging strategy the APC’s Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar of the PDP have engaged themselves in since the campaigns started in the country.
According to him, Obi going to Chatham House was a good thing because it shows there is a third force, an alternative for Nigerians. So, when the two big parties are busy fighting in the mud and muddying themselves, I think Obi gave a good account of himself at Chatham House.
”I mean, he displayed some level of intelligence, capability, and capacity to govern a country. And he was pointing at all of the issues he has been talking about and his vision for Nigeria. So, talking about issue-based politics, away from the ‘rofo-rofo’ of the PDP and APC, there was something to cheer about Obi’s outing in England. Everything he said were issue-based and he actually projected Nigeria well to the outside community,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Presidential Campaign Council, PCC, of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has gone ahead to ask the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to arrest and prosecute the presidential candidate of the APC in order to avoid worsening Nigeria’s already bad situation.
This was contained in an address read by members of the PDP PCC Strategic Communications and Media Teams, in Abuja. The members of the team included the Director of Strategic Communications, Dele Momodu, the Spokesperson of the PCC, Daniel Bwala, Media Adviser to the PDP Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar, Paul Ibe and the Special Assistant, Public Communications to Atiku, Phrank Shaibu among others.
Reading from a prepared text, Shaibu noted that Nigeria is in a precarious situation and any wrong decision taken in the choice of who becomes the next President could spell doom for the nation.
He said: “Nigeria is battling many problems; we have banditry and terrorism ravaging many towns in the North, militants attacking oil facilities and bringing the country’s economy to its knees in the Niger Delta, while secessionists are holding the South-East to ransom. It will be a huge disaster to add state-sponsored drug trafficking to the mix.”
He explained that Tinubu’s forfeiture of $460,000 believed to be proceeds of crime, specifically the sale and distribution of heroin to authorities in the United States, is worthy of further probe.
“Nigerian law is clear. Criminal cases have no statute of limitation and can be re-opened at any time, especially for the sake of national interest.
“We hereby call on the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency to immediately arrest Bola Ahmed Tinubu and prosecute him for drug trafficking.
“Apart from the criminal angle to this call, there is also the national security aspect. The world will recall what happened to Panama when Manuel Noriega, a known drug lord, became President in 1983. During his six-year rule, Panama became a narcos state as Noriega became an ally of the notorious Pablo Escobar’s Medellin cartel,” Shaibu said.
Shaibu noted that Tinubu’s indictment in the US should be an issue of concern for all peace-loving Nigerians because of the dangers his alleged links to drug lords portend for the country in the unlikely event Tinubu becomes President.
“In the unfortunate event of a Bola Tinubu Presidency, Nigerians will be plunged into a drug crisis that would make the Colombia situation a child’s play.
“With easy access to drugs, there will be an increase in violence. Nigerians cannot risk this. In fact, on March 20, 2021, the Chairman of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd) said the South-West had the highest drug abuse cases in the country at 22.4%,” he said.
Speaking in a similar vein, Daniel Bwala, a lawyer, said the request for Tinubu’s arrest and prosecution was born out of patriotic zeal to protect Nigeria’s sovereignty.
He said: “In the last few weeks the nation is greeted by so many reports on social and mainstream media which raise concern on the character and fitness of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Bwala noted that Tinubu was convicted for drug-related offences, specifically money laundering for a drug cartel by a court in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
He said: “You would recall that the court in Chicago had convicted Tinubu of drug and narcotics-related case to which he forfeited the sum of $460,000.
“Our country is afflicted by opioids, and other drug-related cases, which have constituted a threat to our national security. Example is the recent interception of large volumes of cocaine by the NDLEA to which the nation is still awaiting a statement about not only the immediate individuals, who were arrested but the links and association of these individuals to any person no matter how highly placed he or she is in the society.
“Recently, even a spy cop (Abba Kyari) was arrested and is being prosecuted for an allegation of drugs and narcotics. We call on the NDLEA to address the nation on the busted drugs and possible linkage.”
Bwala recalled that the anti-graft agency is yet to furnish Nigerians with the outcome of its investigations into a petition written by a former Managing Director of Alpha Beta, a private tax collecting agency in Lagos.
He said: “A few years ago, the former Managing Director of Alpha Beta lodged a petition at the EFCC against the former governor of Lagos state and now a presidential candidate of APC, Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu.
“The petition involves massive corruption and misappropriation of funds belonging to the government of Lagos State, abuse of office, and conflict of interests.
“The said petition raised issues bordering on a wide range of corruption allegations and we call on the EFCC to address the nation on their findings of the investigation which we believe is long overdue.”
The PDP campaign also charged President Muhammadu Buhari to take steps to prevent his appointee and current Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo SAN, from constituting a threat to the peaceful conduct of next month’s polls.
It accused Keyamo of using his cabinet position to intimidate and threaten government officials and political opponents in order to have his way.
This Bwala said: “It is even coming amidst the widespread allegation of corruption involving the minister and the 52 billion naira approved to his ministry for the empowerment of 774 LGA Nigerians.
“The National Assembly had called for an investigation of how the project was executed and until now the issue has not been told to the Nigerian people.
“This singular conduct has brought the government of President Buhari to disrepute and threatened the legacy he said he will leave behind.
“It is believed now that President Buhari, who recently was reported as saying that cabinet members should focus on governance and not be involved in the campaign, has since made a U-turn and task his cabinet members to influence the agencies of government in favour of the APC.
“Members of the opposition are reported to be increasingly invited by law enforcement agencies for one question or the other in order to weaken them.
“We call on the president to sack the Minister of State for Labour and Employment forthwith for using an official position funded by tax-payers money to interfere with the conduct of free, fair and credible elections.
“We also call on the president to read the riot act to agents of the government from interfering with this election.
“Any effort to intimidate opposition is an effort to interfere with the conduct of peaceful elections.”
But Keyamo in his reaction, mocks PDP, describing them as copycats.
He berated the PDP for calling on the NDLEA and EFCC to arrest and prosecute APC Presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu on charges of drug trafficking.
Dismissing the PDP as copycats, Keyamo, stated that Nigerians are more concerned now about #Atikugate and Special Purpose Vehicle, SPV.
Tweeting on his verified Twitter handle: @fkeyamo, Keyamo said: “I’m laughing; these PDP fellows are pathetic. I was told they copied our style and all their spin doctors held a joint conference. Copycats! Nothing new. All old, unproven stories against @officialABAT. What is gripping the nation now is Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), #AtikuGate.”
While the debacle continues, many Nigerians are expecting the presidential candidates of the APC and the PDP to call on the members of their presidential councils to be cautious and civil in pushing their campaign programmes and stop heating the polity.
KN
Tags: Anthony Isibor Atiku Abubakar Bola Tinubu CUPP Debo Ologunagba Festus Keyamo Michael Achimugu President Muhammadu Buhari
