President Umaru Yar'Adua, Relate Not With Obasanjo

By

Hajiya Hafsat M. Zanna

musahafsat@yahoo.com 

It is with deep sense of patriotism and love I have for my fatherland, Nigeria that I write to caution President Umaru Musa Yar’adua on the danger of fraternizing with the former civilian dictator General Olusegun Obasanjo during his days as Nigeria’s President.

I have no doubt in my mind that President Yar’adua is not un mindful of the lack of popularity, due process, transparency, observance of the rule of law and arrogance of  General Obasanjo while he used his military tactic to preside over the affairs of the country since 1999. The best way therefore out of having  a repeat of this mess called an Obasanjo loot is to openly and sincerely distance himself from Obasanjo’s in human reform programmes, particularly the economic and education aspects.

It will certainly not be out of place to agree with the suggestion put forward by the Atiku Meida Campaign office in Abuja in a press release recently to Yar’adua that as necessary first step to make the Presidential Villa habitable for human beings post May 29, 2007, the new occupant must organize a spiritual cleansing of the area. This is for the simple reason that media reports have indicated that Obasanjo had virtually made the Villa as the nation’s national centre of cult activities with him as the chief occultist. Need I say more?

It is therefore the view of most Nigerians that for Yar’adua to make any meaningful impact and be relevant as a President and not as Obasanjo’s stooge, he must distance himself from his last minute policies, actions, contracts and appointments. That is the surest way for him to assert his role as an executive President and not as a lackey.

The earlier Yar’adua severs relationship with all Obasanjo’s boys like Nuhu Ribadu EFCC; Nasir el Rufai; General Sarki Muhktar, national security adviser; General Abdullahi Mohammed, Chief of Staff; Col Are, DG of SSS and Funsho Kupolokun, NNPC GMD among others the better for him to succeed as a leader. So long as he relates with these men and other fraudulent and ingrate politicians like Tony Anenih, Ahmadu Ali, Bode George, Abdullahi Adamu, Danjuma Goje, Jubril Aminu, Andy  Uba, Ojo Maduekwe and Barnabas Gemade among others.  The need for Yar’adua to relate with these dubious public officers and politicians cannot be overemphasized if he intends to be a President of Nigeria for Nigerians. These groups have held Nigerians captive for the last eight years and they are ready to do so as long as it wishes them so that they can continue to milk this country dry at our expense.

An opportunity has now presented itself for Yar’adua to prove his worth to Nigerians.. He needs to disabuse the minds of pessimists that he is capable of giving Nigeria a good, effective, purposeful, committed and result oriented leadership. In spite of the reported and often exaggerated ill health of Yar’adua, he needs to act fast so that opportunists and veterans of ‘any government in power’ will not have a say in the running of his administration. I humbly appeal to Yar’adua not to act and behave like Obasanjo. He must remain disciplined, focused, patriotic, nationalistic, transparent, open and sincere. He must not be vindictive, parochial, sectional, sentimental, tribalistic and a distraction to achieving our national goals. Yara’dua must not be a nuisance to Nigerian and Nigerians.

Like Ambassador Baba Gana Kingibe, the Secretary to the government of the federation, SGF recently said, the Yar’adua Presidency is a government of restoration, and so Obasanjo has gone with his reforms. This is to say that the unpopular reform programme of Obasanjo has being thrown to the dogs. This is surely the best way to earn the support and confidence of Nigerians. The Obasanjo reforms are nothing to write home about. Rather than improving the living condition of the citizenry, the programme has further impoverished Nigerians and consequently made life more difficult for them. A discontinuation of these obnoxious and inhuman agenda is a necessary evil that must be considered at this point of our national life.

It is high time for Yar’adua to finally dump Obasanjo and all he stands for in the interest of development, progress, peace and unity in the country. May Allah in his infinite mercy guide and protect Yar’adua as he runs away from the devilish antics of former President Obasanjo.

 

HAJIYA HAFSAT M. ZANNA

Maiduguri