‘Atiku, Buhari ‘ll lose at S/Court’

Abel OladokunThe Zonal Coordinator (South West), National Support for Yar’Adua/Jonathan Presidency (NSYJP), Dr. Abel Oladokun, speaks with Stepehen Gbadamosi on President Umaru Yar’Adua’s victory at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal and opposition to his government.

How do you view some people’s comment that the recent judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal which upheld the election of President Umaru Yar’Adua was faulty?
There are no two ways to it, everybody knows that during the election, about 50 parties participated and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which won is the largest political party in black Africa now. Also, there was no serious opposition as we had in the National Party of Nigeria (NPN)/Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) days. The Action Congress (AC) was floated late by the former vice president, Atiku Abubakar; it cannot be regarded as a virile opposition. General Muhammadu Buhari’s All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) is a sectional party; it is not formidable. PDP cuts across all states of the federation; it is even all over Africa, Europe and America.

So, the tribunal’s verdict was a vindication of what was on the ground. Besides, President Yar’Adua is a servant-leader. He is not a despot, you can see the acceptance that greeted the judgment.

How come the ANPP won some of the states if you said it was no serious opposition during the election?
How many states did it win? A party that won about three or four states out of 36, not even up to one-third of the states, cannot be a serious opposition party. And the states are not even spread across the country; it is only in the North that it won the few states.

Nigeria as a whole did not know who Yar’Adua would be before the election. Why are you citing his being a servant-leader, as you called it, as one of the reasons he won at the tribunal?
When Murtala Muhammed ruled the country, it didn’t take up to one year for Nigerians to know the stuff he was made of. The same goes for Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. Jesus Christ spent only 33 years for him to be recognised as the messiah. It is not how far but how well. Yar’Adua is the third president and apart from Sheu Shagari, he is the only one regarded as a servant-leader. The only difference is that unlike Shagari, he is a graduate, an intellectual. He is silent and action-packed, unlike Shagari who was being pushed around by Adisa Akinloye and others.

Some people believe that the elevation of the chairman of the election petition panel to the Supreme Court was one of the antics used to sway the outcome of the tribunal. Are you saying there were no under-the-table dealings to ensure victory for Yar’Adua?
In Nigeria, losers do not accept defeat with the spirit of sportsmanship; they don’t congratulate the winner. Go to Britain, losers congratulate winners. Look at George Bush and Al-Gore, when Al-Gore saw that the election was being rounded off and he was losing, he quickly congratulated Bush. The AC won only in Lagos State and that was because of the misunderstanding between Bode George and the other faction, otherwise, AC would not have won. Is a party that won one out of 36 states a good opposition party? And what has Atiku got to offer that he couldn’t in eight years as vice president? So, there was nothing like under-the-table dealings. Yar’Adua is an action-packed president; you can see that in the past couple of months, there has not been fuel shortage; it is available everywhere eventhough the background had already been put there by former President Olusegun Obasanjo. So, Obasanjo was just like John the Baptist; a fore-runner. Yar’Adua is like Jesus Christ. Therefore, they should go to the Supreme Court or anywhere; the man will win landslide.

What assurance do you have that if there had been a bye-election, Yar’Adua would win?
I am not a registered party man, I am a civil servant, but I want to tell you that we floated National Support for Yar’Adua/ Jonathan Presidency to save our nation from those politicians who don’t accept defeat easily. This is the first time people from all regions of the country would come together to form a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that cuts across all ethnic groups to support a president. We have asked everybody to support this man in any eventuality so that he would lead us to the promised land.

People said it was disturbing that part of the bases on which the judgment was given was the premise on some allegedly faulty precedents like the Olu Falae versus Obasanjo case etc. Are you not disturbed by this?
As far as I know, the judges have their facts. There are technicalities that you and I don’t understand. If you look at the Shagari/Awolowo case, immediately the judgment was given, it was decreed that it should not be referred to. Nobody has said these other judgments should not be referred to. So, I cannot see any flaw.

Now that Yar’Adua’s position has been legitimised by the tribunal, what do you think Nigerians stand to gain?
From now on, oppressive governance has become a thing of the past. Yar’Adua is not here to embezzle our funds. If you look at his track record in Katsina State, despite the meagre allocation to the state, he was able to transform it and left billions of money in the state coffers. He is here to serve, that is why we are appealing to all Nigerians to support him.

I will seize this opportunity to advise Atiku, who was struggling with his boss when he was vice president, to remember Yar’Adua’s senior brother, his benefactor, and throw his weight behind Umaru. That they have appealed the election result is good for our democracy, but we should all recognise the winner.

Do you think Yar’Adua can tackle the problems in the power sub-sector?
Even Jesus Christ used people’s support to succeed. Yar’Adua is just a man like everyone of us; he needs our support to succeed. Let us give him the support and see what he will do. He will transform the energy sector. Let the committee he set up on energy come up with its recommendations, you will see what he will do.

What would you tell the National Assembly in this regard?
We have people of high calibre in the National Assembly. They know what they should do. If they deviate, we, the people, know what to do. My advice is that everybody should work independently for the good of all Nigerians so that we can get to the promised land.