On 2015 Presidential Election

1.  Majority of politicians who encourage you to re-contest in 2015 do not share in your vision. Most of them, especially Hausa Fulani politicians, want to ride on your popularity to victory politically. Today, even Mallam El Rufai who insulted you and described you as a ‘perpetually unelectable’ politician in 2010 is now singing your praises. So, what has changed between then and now other than El Rufai’s selfish desire to use you to achieve his political ambition? Just take a look at his campaign posters in Kaduna and judge for yourself. This was the same reason that led to massive influx of politicians, mostly Hausa Fulani politicians into CPC in 2011. They know that without you, they are politically dead, hence, they will continue to flatter you, insult your perceived political opponents and pretend to support you in order to ensure your continuous participation in partisan politics for their selfish interests.

2.  Most Nigerian politicians are thieves, including members of your party, APC. Currently, all lawmakers in NASS, irrespective of party affiliation, are cooperating amongst themselves to steal public funds. If any of them or any Nigerian politician believes that you will fight corruption if elected into office as Nigerian president, he or she will not vote for you. Do not be deceived because they are into politics primarily to steal public funds and protect their ill gotten wealth as long as they live. In addition, there are thousands of very corrupt and influential Nigerians such as ex-presidents, ex-governors, contractors,  etc  who had already corruptly enriched themselves.  As long as these thieves are alive, they will go to any length to ensure that your path to Aso Rock Villa is strewn with impassable obstacles.

3.  You supported introduction of Sharia Laws in the north in 2000 and advised Muslims to vote only for politicians who would  protect Islam. When ex-Governor Yerima was criticized for amputating a Muslim’s hand for stealing, you supported it and asked’ what is wrong if, according to Sharia Laws,  Muslims cut off another Muslim’s hand for stealing?’ You said that Boko Haram terrorists were fighting for their rights like Niger Delta militants did. You also called on Federal  Government to grant them amnesty and stop dropping bombs on ‘innocent northerners’. In recognition of your support, Boko Haram terrorists nominated you to lead their delegation for negotiation with Federal Government. A member of European Parliament, Mr Franz Obermayr accused you of sponsoring Boko Haram terrorists, but up till date you have not reacted to this weighty allegation. Also, you have not even for once condemned the on going widespread destruction of lives and properties of northern minorities by Fulani herdsmen in the north. Because of these amongst others, you are the most popular living politician amongst Hausa Fulani Muslims, especially Islamic fundamentalists who believe that you are the ‘Amir’ who will surely implement Sharia Laws in Nigeria. For the same reasons Sir, non-Hausa Fulani/Kanuri Nigerians fear and detest you with a passion, especially northern minorities who are being butchered daily by Fulani herdsmen and Boko Haram terrorists.

4. You won a total of 12,214,853 votes during the presidential election in 2011. Out of these, you got 10,078,356 votes [82.5% of the votes]from Hausa Fulani and Kanuri dominated states in North West Geopolitical Zone [NWGZ] and North East Geopolitical Zone [NEGZ]. From your geopolitical zone alone, NWGZ, you secured 53% [ 6,453,437 votes] of the total votes, [12,214,853 votes]. However, you did not secure the mandatory 25% of votes cast in any state in the south. Though you did not even campaign in those states, you expected Nigerians in those states to vote for you, Sir, what do you take them for?  As expected, you said the elections were rigged in those states which you did not win, but free, fair and credible in those states which you won. The fact is that whether you campaign or not, you will always win elections in those Hausa Fulani and Kanuri dominated states. But Sir, the opinions held by a high percentage of the rest  Nigerians about you are just too negative. Some of your praise singers are collaborating with Sahara Reporter Newspaper to produce bogus online opinion polls in your favour. Sir, you may wish to hold political rallies outside Hausa Fulani/Kanuri dominated towns to see things for yourself.

5.    Sir, your real supporters are product of Almajiri System of Islamic Education whose upbringing does not permit independent and logical analysis of any situation. They are programmed to accept whatever their leaders tell them without reasoning. They consider the use of violence to settle any dispute as a norm and they rarely travel out of their immediate environments. They believe that implementation of Sharia Laws will transform Nigeria into a paradise and they strongly believe that you are the only trustworthy politician who will guarantee Sharia Laws in Nigeria. They believe that Hausa Fulani Muslims constitute 80% of Nigerian population and because of this mindset, they conclude that you must win in any election even if nobody votes for you in other parts of the country. Unfortunately Sir, you also believe that you are so popular that no Nigerian politician can defeat you in a free and fair election, hence, your penchant to condemn any election as being rigged whenever you do not win.  Sir, the truth is, most non-Hausa Fulani/Kanuri  Nigerians do not want you as their leader for whatever reason.

6.  Judging from your antecedent Sir, election is only free, fair and credible when you win. You emerged as a presidential candidate in 2003, 2007 and 2011 through consensus arrangement. You want APC’s presidential candidate, preferably you, to emerge through consensus. Now, Hausa Fulani pressure groups such as ACF and NEF have sprung into action to cause Tambuwal, Atiku and Kwankwaso to step down for you. As for Sam Nda-Isaiah, since he is not a Hausa Fulani Muslim, ACF and NEF do not consider it worthy to even approach him to step down for you. Sir, if you are as popular as you believe, please go through indirect primary election with the rest presidential aspirants, stop begging Senator Tinubu to anoint you APC’s presidential candidate and withdraw your ‘attack dogs’ from further  intimidating other presidential aspirants to step down for you.

7. Sir, you are reputed to be an incorruptible retired General with impeccable integrity. These two qualities had been your unique selling points amongst politicians, but two decisions you took of recent have cast doubt on them. In 2011 you promised that you would never contest for elective office again and sealed it with a rich dose of tears. Last month in Abuja, you dishonored that promise because according to you, many Nigerians begged you to come and ‘rescue the nation’.  You said a delegation from Niger state and another one from Kano state came to beg you. Sir, can you also mention any delegation that begged you from any non-Hausa Fulani state, none for sure. Recently, you said Mallam El Rufai was the one who prevailed on you to change your mind. You described him as ‘ a kind of person that will respect you if you respect yourself and if you don’t respect yourself, he will help you go down the drain.’ Sir. when he insulted you and described you as a ‘perpetually unelectable ‘ person in 2010, was it because you did not respect yourself? Sir, it seems you have embraced doublespeak as a tool in your political career, so, under what circumstance will it be advisable for Nigerians to believe anything you say again?

8.    Sir, as if the self-mutilation of your much trumpeted ‘impeccable integrity’ was not enough, you told Nigerians how you got a loan of N27.5 million on a ‘man know man basis’ from a Bank in Kaduna by telephone call in less than 12 hours without a collateral to buy APC nomination forms. Sir, these are your words ‘ N27.5 million is a big sum, thankfully I have a personal relationship with the manager of my bank in Kaduna and early this morning, I put an early call, I told him that very soon the forms are coming so, whether I am on red or green or even black, please honour it, otherwise I may lose the nomination’. Sir, please, ignore your ‘praise singers and attack dogs’ but  enlist the services of lawyers who will be sincere and bold enough to explain the full weight of this transaction to you. Every aspect of this transaction is corruption personified. If you are this poor, whether you win or not, how do you intend to repay the loan? How will you fund your campaigns? Is it the right thing for a poor person to borrow N27.5 million from a bank without collateral and invest the whole money in gambling [politics]? Sir, a lot of questions begging for answers. In a society where politicians respect themselves and do not see election as a do or die issue, the least you ought to have done since, is to return people’s money [N27.5m] to the owners [the Bank], apologize to Nigerians and withdraw from partisan politics. But here in Nigeria, anything goes, especially when one’s ability to reason objectively is irretrievably impaired by ‘born-to-rule’ syndrome and chronic desperation.

9.   Sir, no person or delegation prevailed on you to change your mind and re-contest in 2015 but the following reasons. The first is the massive movement of Hausa Fulani Muslims to southern Nigeria to register and vote for you in 2015. With this, you hope to secure the mandatory 25% of total votes cast in each of the 17 states in southern Nigeria. The current widespread confusion associated with PVCs distribution and registration of new voters in southern Nigeria is purposely engineered by INEC to accommodate this plan. The second is the plan by Professor Attahiru Jega to create 21,615 Polling Units for the north as against only 8,412 Polling Units for the south. Though Professor Jega had reluctantly suspended this plan which he designed to give you undeserved 10,807,500 votes, he had opted for Plan ‘B’ which is to replace commissioners in the south with those in the north in order to manipulate 2015 presidential elections in your favour. The third is Senator Tinubu’s promise to deliver Yoruba votes to APC in 2015. You believe this because Senator Tinubu had already demonstrated his willingness to repeat the mistake of Aare Ona Kakanfo Afonja of Oyo Empire who collaborated with itinerant Fulani charm maker, Alimi in 19th century to ‘donate’  Ilorin to itinerant Fulani herdsmen. Because of above reasons, you concluded that your chance to emerge victorious in any presidential election had never been so bright, hence, you prevailed on yourself to dishonor your promise and re-contest in 2015.

10.   Sir, you are one of a few Nigerians who had been blessed by Allah/God, even to a fault. You have been a General Officer Commanding, Military Governor, Federal  Commissioner of NNPC, Head of State and C-in-C of Federal Republic of Nigeria and Chairman of PTF just to mention a few. At a ripe age of 72, what do you want again from Allah/God? In 2011, ten [10] youth  coppers were among hundreds of innocent non-Hausa Fulani/Kanuri Nigerians slaughtered by your supporters in northern Nigeria even before INEC announced the results of the presidential election. As if that is not bloody and despicable enough, you have promised to soak non-Hausa Fulani/Kanuri Nigerians whom you prefer to call ‘dogs and baboons’ in blood if you lose presidential election in 2015. If one may ask, after butchering these Nigerians you call ‘dogs and baboons’ in 2015, what next? Sir, you may be ‘untouchable’ with millions of human robots [almajiri supporters] at your command to do whatever you like here on earth, but note that one day, you will stand before your creator [Allah/God] alone for judgement.

11.  People of Niger Delta believe that you are amongst core north politicians who sponsor Boko Haram terrorists and Fulani herdsmen to destabilize Jonathan’s administration. Consequently, if you win in 2015, they will also make your government ungovernable by disrupting oil and gas production throughout the period of your government. Due to non availability of funds, it will be difficult for governments at all levels to function. Funding for security forces will be considerably reduced thereby weakening their capacity and commitment to fight Boko Haram terrorists, Fulani herdsmen and militants in the creeks of Niger Delta. The environment so created will be conducive for Boko Haram terrorists to easily achieve their aim of establishing a Caliphate at least in north eastern states. The center will be too weak to enforce laws and order thereby encouraging ‘self help’ and gradual but sustained disintegration of the nation. Sir, with the same zeal that galvanizes you to continuously re-contest, please do use it to arrange for alternative sources of revenue because it will never be business as usual as far as oil and gas revenue is concerned, or else be prepared to go down in history as a Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachov of Nigeria.

12.  And if you lose the presidential election in 2015, there will be serious problems also but unlike in 2011, you now have a reliable partner, Senator Tinubu in SWGZ. While you pledged to soak ‘dogs and baboons’ in blood in the north if you lose next year’s presidential election, your partner, Senator Tinubu equally promised to roast Nigerians alive in the south if APC does not win next year. Since  both of you had never accepted defeat in any election however credible it may be, the country is most likely to go up in flames if you lose the presidential election. However, both of you have nothing to lose if that happens because each of you is above 60 years old. Secondly, while Tinubu can easily flee with his family in his private jet to ‘Toronto’, you also can evacuate your family to Sudan in your bullet proof jeeps. But Sir, as you orchestrate destruction of lives and properties of non-Hausa Fulani/Kanuri Nigerians in Hausa Fulani controlled parts of northern Nigeria, note that there are millions of innocent, hardworking, peace loving Hausa Fulani/Kanuri Nigerians living in the rest parts of Nigeria, because this time around, there may be disproportionate and uncontrolled reprisal attacks.

13. Sir, whether you win or not, your participation as a presidential candidate in 2015 will unleash unprecedented disaster on this nation.  Please step aside for the sake of unity and survival of Nigeria. Anoint and give your total support to any northerner of your choice for the job. But Sir, if you decide to listen to the El Rufais whose primary aim is to use your popularity to achieve their political ambitions, you will definitely  dismiss this suggestion and even the advise earlier given to you by the revered Sheik Gumi as arrant nonsense. May Allah/God grant our leaders the grace to conduct themselves as leaders.

Dr Deborah Nelson

Sobi, Ilorin, Kwara State


Source: Pointblanknews