EL

Open Memo To President Jonathan On Sokoto PDP Primary

Max Gbanite

Your Excellency Sir;

This is an unsolicited advice, however, since we elected you as our President, and conferred upon you, the right to lead us; as your subjects, we have the right to address you or write to you, especially, on matters of significance, and any other that will affect our nation positively and otherwise.

As a concerned Nigerian, I want to sympathize with you on the high-jacking of your Presidency by a cabal: Sir, it is okay, because you are not the first President of Nigeria to enjoy the negative-intrigues delivered from the hands of self-interest-cabals. If in doubt, take a look at the history of all our past Presidents; from Sir, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa; General Aguiyi Ironsi; General Yakubu Gowon; Gen. Muritala Mohammed; Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo; President Shehu Shagari; Gen. Muhammadu Buhari; Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida; Gen. Sani Abacha; Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar; Obasanjo again; and President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua; So there is nothing strange about cabals. However, where as a citizen, I feel that you should be different are in the areas of ‘Rule of Law’ and ‘keeping your Promises’.

Sir, I say this, because you are without question, the second President of Nigeria with a University Degree; and in this case a doctoral degree (Ph.D); and Your late boss, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, was the first. Your campaign slogans were very effective and Nigerians fell in love with you, especially, when you said that, “You have no enemies to fight” and that, “no Nigerian blood is worthy of any politicians ambitions.” Both are vintage words of wisdom, and to cap it, your spin-doctors convinced us the voters that you are distinctively “a breadth-of-fresh Air.” In other words, that you’re being a highly educated man makes you different from all the other former presidents. Therefore, for whom much is given, much is expected; our expectations of your performance level must be higher than that of former presidents, afterall, you have a Ph.D.

Sir, since you became the President, the ‘breadth-of-fresh Air’ has become quite ‘ordourciferous’. The Air is filled with particles of anti-democratic-syndrome, and the toxic-air is blowing on your own home state of Bayelsa; and the wind is gradually sending it towards the good and peaceful people of Sokoto State; separatist-ideological-movement backed with Terrorism; fuel subsidy removal; and other varying types of toxic air is what we, your subjects, have been breathing since you became our president; and since I am not one of your paid special advisers, allow me my citizen’s right to speak frankly to you through the print media.

The anti-democratic-toxic-air-syndrome pumped into the atmosphere recently in Bayelsa State, is very distant from that of ‘Fresh Air’, rather it is asphyxiating the rule of law and democratic ethos, and I will not comment further on it because many reputable commentators have done so. However, since the majority have kept quiet, it seems the same is about to happen in the caliphate state of Sokoto; why?

I ask why; because of the security implications such an action may present to your administration and the nation. As it is already, our security agencies are remarkably over stretched; the Army, Police, SSS and other paramilitary agencies are currently being over worked in the North Eastern states of Borno, Bauchi, Yobe, and soon if care is not taken, Gombe, Adamawa, and Taraba may follow; may God forbid!

Sir, with all due respect, ThisDay Newspaper, Sunday, December 4, 2011, captured in essence the body language or psychological direction of your party Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on what will or may happen in Sokoto before the state gubernatorial primary, scheduled for December 17, 2011. In that write-up, it was suggested that the party, with your alleged consent, may have decided to use the ‘Bayelsa-Option’ against the incumbent governor, Aliyu Wamakko.

According to ThisDay, governor Wamakko, may get the ‘Bayelsa-Option’ for committing the following sins:

1. He openly canvassed for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, during the last Presidential Primaries against your good self; resulting in your getting thirty-five (35%) percent votes from the delegates, while Atiku, got sixty-five (65%) percent;

2. He encouraged and financed Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal to become the Speaker of House of Representatives in contravention of the party’s zoning policy which wanted the position zoned to the south west;

3. That he financed the elections of the ANPP governorship candidate in Zamfara State against PDP candidate; and financed CPC candidate in Kebbi State against PDP too.

Your Excellency Sir, you have a doctoral degree, and that means that, your thinking, reasoning and absorption of information must be at a high level. If you truly read the daily security report presented to you from the various agencies operating in Sokoto, you will find out that these allegations are pedestrian in nature.

The voting pattern of Sokoto delegates during the PDP primary was a true indication of democracy, when compared to that of delegates from South-south, South-east, and South-west collectively. These southern states gave Atiku none. Sir, I think the delegates from Sokoto state, made your ascendancy a legitimate one; and the indigenes showed their love towards you in the general election, by voting overwhelmingly for you.

At this point permit me to say unequivocally that I hold no briefs for Governor Aliyu Wamakko. However, I noticed that in all the allegations, he was never accused of not delivering PDP to you in the general election against a Hausa-Fulani, Gen. Buhari; be mindful that Sokoto state is indeed a Hausa-Fulani enclave. Again, I noticed that no one has come out to say that the governor did not deliver on his democratic promises to the people of Sokoto. These are key important issues, and since he did deliver, then the credit must go to him and PDP, with you the President as a collateral beneficiary. So why change a winning system and team?

Can anyone in their right mind accuse you of anti-party activity when you supported your very good friend Timi Alaibe, to join another party and contest the election against your party in the last election? How come nobody has equally accused your late boss, President Umaru Yar’Adua of doing the same in Edo State, when he supported the incumbent Governor, Adams Oshiomhole’s law suit against a sitting PDP governor? There must be a bond of friendship between people that cuts across party business sir.

Sir, the security implication is simple; it is already on record that the current state of insecurity in the country came as a result of bad politics, or what I call ‘Political Terrorism.’ Politicians in PDP allowed the so called ‘militancy’ opportunism in the South-South, when they created arms-carrying thugs called ‘egbesu-boys’. They later metamorphosed as kidnappers, terrorists and economic saboteurs in the name of righteousness; In the North East, Boko Haram adherents were once ANPP armed thugs called ‘Ecomog boys’ and were allegedly funded by ANPP in Borno state; and the ‘Yankaleri’ were also thugs allegedly armed and funded by PDP in Gombe State; so you can see the roadmap of patronization and turning of innocent youths into militant-terrorists by Politicians.

The recent arrest of a serving Senator, and member of PDP from Borno state, is a clear indication of what politicians are willing to do for personal interest and gains against the collective will of the people in general. Please allow all those interested in contesting the primaries for governorship in Sokoto State under the platform of PDP to do so. As the leader of the party and President of the country, be different from others, especially from our former Emperor and President, Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo, whom Almighty God used without his (Obasanjo’s) choice to make you our President. Please sir, do not allow a situation where the rivalry, if at all any exist, between ‘Old PDP’ and ‘New PDP’ to escalate to an irretrievable level that may cause Sokoto State to burn; in short ‘Sokoto-must-not-Burn.’

Investigation reports on Security already indicates that, youths from the North-East are quietly and gradually infiltrating Sokoto state; and they will eventually become willing tools of disgruntled politicians, to be used for the destruction of the State and heighten security challenges. And, our nation does not need another war zone to develop in the North West, especially, in the caliphate.

Sir, I hope you remember what happened in the 80’s when a Sultan was imposed on the good and peaceful people of Sokoto. We don’t need negative transformation, we desire positive transformation; and that is what you did promise; so carry on with it Sir, and give us back the ‘fresh air’ you promised us.

Sir, let me end with this quote from an anonymous inventor who opined that, “To know what to do is wisdom. To know how to do it is skill. But doing it, as it should be done, tops the other two virtues.” May Almighty God give you the courage and wisdom to build and strengthen democratic institutions and culture; and not the building of big-man-syndrome institutions.