Following his open letter, in which he condemned President Muhammadu Buhari’s leadership style, former President Olusegun Obasanjo has sustained efforts to ensure that Buhari does not return to power in 2019. YUSUF MOHAMMED reports.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has metamorphosed into a one-man riot squard, pulling down successive governments he believes have become liabilities to the people. Having ruthlessly dealt with the Goodluck Jonathan administration in the 2015 elections, Obasanjo recently returned to his arsenal with a plot to remove President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 presidential election.
After sending Buhari a damning open letter in which he highlighted his obvious shortcomings and the glaring failings of his administration, Obasanjo stepped up a campaign for the formation of a Coalition for Nigeria Movement (CNM), which is seeking to dislodge Buhari’s All Progressives Congress (APC).
Apart from that, The Next Edition gathered from a reliable source that Obasanjo has been holding meetings with political leaders across the country irrespective of their party affiliations, all in a bid to unseat Buhari in 2019. Some members of the APC who are not happy with the situation in the party and its performance in government are said to be funding the Coalition.
Many are of the view that it would not be an easy task to dislodge the ruling party. They think that unlike 2015, the opposition parties do not seem to have a clear plan as candidates are springing up from all angles. It is believed that soon after Jonathan won the presidential election in 2011, Buhari, who at that time, was the leader of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and Bola Tinubu who led the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) began strategizing ahead of 2015 general elections. As a result, the APC was formed through the coalition of main opposition parties.
Today, the opposition parties don’t seem to have a similar cohesion. While the PDP on one hand is trying to stage a comeback, the minority parties tend to favour the emerging third force – Obasanjo’s idea. Obasanjo has been a major player in Nigerian politics since the 1970’s. From Otta farm, Ogun State, he has been able to either work his way to power or pave the way for his preferred candidates.
He has been at the helm of affairs twice. First as a military head of state and later as a civilian president. He supported the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to become president in 2007 to the dismay of his vice, Atiku Abubakar and former military president, Ibrahim Babangida who were also interested in the nation’s top job.
When Yar’Adua died, he made sure Jonathan succeeded without hitches. He also urged Jonathan, who is from the South-South region to run for President in 2011 when northerners argued that the presidency had been zoned to the north. Obasanjo became unpopular in the north as a result of that.
In 2015, his support for Buhari earned him his lost glory and respect. He endorsed Buhari and admonished Jonathan. He kicked against Jonathan by writing an 18- paged letter. In the months leading to the election, Obasanjo tore his PDP membership card in what many Nigerians viewed as unnecessary show of arrogance and ingratitude to the party that brought him to power.
Today, he has turned his back on Buhari, the way he did to Jonathan. Some are of the view that Obasanjo wants to control whoever is in power. Others disagree with that notion and argue that he only wants the best for Nigeria, thus going against any leader who goes off track. The former President started his quest to unseat Buhari in 2019 by issuing a 13-page statement, criticising Buhari’s performance and concluded that he should not seek re-election.
That statement attracted mixed reactions from Nigerians. Some asked, “what does Obasanjo want again? Others were happy that Obasanjo finally came out against Buhari ahead 2019. He officially registered as a member of the Coalition for Nigeria Movement, barely one week after his scathing letter to President Buhari.
The ceremony, which was held at the NUJ secretariat, Abeokuta, Ogun State, was attended by former Governor of Osun State, Olagunsoye Oyinlola and former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, who are members of CNM. Oyinlola is the national coordinator of the group. Another notable politician in Obasnajo’s new movement is former national chairman of the PDP, Chief Ahmadu Ali. Others are expected to join soon.
Obasanjo had proposed the Coalition in his letter as a platform to mobilize Nigerians against Buhari’s re-election bid.
Expressing optimism after his registration, he said, “I am happy to be a member of the Coalition for Nigeria Movement, which is a movement for good governance.
“This is the commencement for our popular and grassroots association. The membership will be free to collectively decide on whether it will become a political party and if it decides to transform itself and go into partisan politics, I will cease to be a member.”
Obasanjo made it clear that the CNM has nothing to do with the third force. He said, “It is necessary to make it clear that this new movement does not regard itself as a third force.
“It sees itself as a popular movement that can accommodate all Nigerians irrespective of their political interest or affiliations and will propel Nigeria forward,” he said.
To further send shivers down the spine of the APC and the PDP, the former President, last month boasted that the Coalition has recorded over three million memberships. Obasanjo made the disclosure while responding to questions from women at the 14th annual lecture of the Women in Management, Business and Public Service at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
He said, “The CNM is penetrating the grassroots. And presently there are over three million members who had registered.” After weeks of silence, Obasanjo last week again, labeled Buhari a failure. The former President, said governments at all levels are patronizing impunity. Obasanjo said with the issue of continuous impunity, Nigeria cannot move forward.
Speaking in Abeokuta, Ogun State, when President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Isma’la Zakari, paid him a courtesy visit, Obasanjo said the country must be sanitised with the right leadership for governance to move forward. The former president warned that God would judge those who try to run the country aground with impunity and other forms of ungodliness.
He said, “We don’t even look at ourselves and that is the unfortunate thing. We should look at ourselves and say yes, where did we go wrong and have the humility to say wherever we have gone wrong, we are ready to make amends.
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“We go on with impunity as if we created ourselves and the country. My prayer is that those who try to run this country aground with impunity, we leave them in the hands of God and God in His infinite mercies knows what to do.
“We cannot go on with impunity and think that it will all be well. So, ICAN’s idea of accountability index should be welcomed by all men and women of goodwill in this country.” However, the president’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, responded to Obasanjo’s comments in a telephone interview on Channels Television on Monday. He said the assessment was not new.
“Already, the statement issued few months ago by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, in response to the earlier criticism made against the government by Obasanjo had adequately addressed the issues raised.
According to Adesina, the Buhari administration has successfully tackled mismanagement of the nation’s economy, as Nigeria now has more savings in its foreign reserve than ever before.
Some say Obansanjo is an opportunist who usually waits for the right time to strike. Others see him as an elder statesman who is just doing his job for the love of Nigeria.
Former Ogun State Labour Party Chairman and now a chieftain of the PDP, Chief Niyi Oshoba, in a chat with The Next Edition said Nigerians should be lucky to have someone like Obasanjo. He said, “As an elder statesman, he has the right to air his views. We need someone of Obasanjo’s standing to be the voice of the people. Let us not ignore the
A social commentator, Mr. Austin Uzor, does not see it that way. To him, Obasanjo is the conscience of the nation. He said, “Obasanjo has seen it all. At his age, I don’t think he is seeking relevance. Looking at his antecedents, it is clear that he has always been on the same page with majority of Nigerians. He may not be a saint, but he definitely, is the conscience of the nation.”
On the other hand, most political analysts agree that Obasanjo has gauged the mood of the country and realized that it does not favour President Buhari. They say if Buhari were to be performing to the expectations of Nigerians, there would be no room for someone like Obasanjo to speak out.
Will Buhari be consumed by Obasanjo’s drive for a new leadership?