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2023 Presidency: APC Targets Former President Jonathan
By Eric Elezuo
Everything being equal, the immediate past President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, will be presenting himself again in 2023 for the highest office, which he vacated in 2015, after losing to the incumbent, Muhammadu Buhari, in a keenly contested election, marred by random victimisation and character assassination.
However, the former President may have to ditch his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and decamp to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to actualise this dream, according to findings by The Boss.
In the last couple of weeks, the media have been inundated with reports of the fact that the APC are wooing the former President to join their party, and run on its platform for the 2023 Presidential Election, to clinch the Presidency. Though Jonathan has continually maintained that he remained a PDP member, the plot of the APC to get him to their camp has remained alive.
Stakeholders and political observers, who spoke to The Boss on the condition of anonymity, said the plans of the APC, and by extension the North to lure Jonathan back to the Presidency is real, adding however, that the intentions are selfishly connected.
In their separate analyses, they maintained that the plans of the North is to pair Jonathan with the Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, as the Vice President. In so doing, the possibility of a northerner continuing after Jonathan will be secured.
Speaking, one of the sources said: “The North is not comfortable with staying out of presidential power for a whole eight years, and therefore, needs a decoy to hold forth for them for four years before they bounce back again.
“It’s obvious that Jonathan will not serve beyond four years or one term, having completed a first term in office before being ousted in 2015. This permutation is behind the North’s consistent wooing of the PDP stalwart, and they believe that Jonathan may not have the willpower to reject the offer, considering the trappings that come with being the number one citizen of Nigeria. More so, with el-Rufai as his deputy, there’s the possibility that he could be well checkmated while he runs his four years course as president.”
APC’s plans are made manifest by the announcement on Sunday by a chieftain of the party, Senator Abubakar Geiri, that the party has zoned the 2023 Presidency to the South-South; ostensibly to give Jonathan a leeway to make his decamping moves. Jonathan is from Bayelsa State, South-South, Nigeria.
Geiri, who is the Chairman of APC Registration and Revalidation Panel for Akwa Ibom State, made this known during the kick-off of the registration and revalidation exercise in Uyo, the state capital.
The party chieftain was quoted as saying that President Buhari and the Caretaker Chairman of the party, who is also the Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, are in the know of the decision.
He said: “In 2023, the presidency is coming back to the South. I am not saying this by myself. I have the authority of Mr President, I have the authority of the national chairman of the party, to tell you that the Presidency is coming back to the South. So, with this, the ball is now in your court.
“I am sure that very soon all of these mushroom parties would also copy us, and say their presidency would also come to the South. So, you can see that if you don’t come out en masse to register for APC, our candidate may still not win. So, come out and register, and vote for APC in all the elections that are coming.”
In the meantime, political observers are wondering why and how Jonathan will fall for the bait of defecting to the APC, a party that is unanimously believed to have damaged not only the country in all ramifications, but also his own reputation as an administrator and a person. Many have wondered what they would tell Nigerians during the campaigns. It would be another case of the Edo 2020 Election, where it was practically impossible selling Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu after he was thoroughly de-marketed in 2016 by the same party. A common denominator in the permutations is that Jonathan will not agree to such terms. Obviously, not with how the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and security apparatuses have treated his wife, Patience Jonathan, in the days succeeding the loss of the 2015 election, among other issues.
Again, observers have also said that the possibility is rife, adding that the Aso Rock Villa, the seat of power, has in recent times been a second home for Goodluck Jonathan, as the former President has remained a regular visitor to the Villa in his capacity as the ECOWAS Special Envoy on Mali Crisis.
“Do you think it is only Mali they discuss whenever he is in the Villa,” a source asked rhetorically.
It would be recalled as well that in the past days, a former Minister of Aviation and PDP chieftain, Femi Fani-kayode, has been seen frolicking with the APC, in what many people termed the final steps to becoming a member of the APC.
A source told The Boss that Fani-kayode is another trump card the APC and the North are playing to get Jonathan into the party and fulfill their political arrangement. It is believed that Fani-kayode, a known loyalist of Jonathan, can convince the former President to dance to the tune of the APC. His visits to the Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello, and APC Caretaker Committee Chairman, and Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, seem to lend credence to the fact. And so, Bello was confident to publicly announce that Fani-kayode has finally joined the APC. Though he denied joining the APC, observers say there’s no smoke without fire.
As the APC continually cast their dragnet towards Jonathan and the South-South, it is difficult to say what will become of the Igbo, who majority of Nigerians believe should have a shot at the presidency, and of course the party’s National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, whose supporters are already rolling out the drums in readiness for the coveted presidential seat.
Whatever happens as the bells of 2023 chime, everyone agrees that it will surely be a paradigm shift.
The Boss Newspaper
China, on Tuesday, opposed US President Donald Trump’s threat to carry out military action against Nigeria over the alleged persecution of Christians, as it backed the Nigerian government in leading its people to follow a development path in line with its national conditions.
Trump Saturday said if the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the US will immediately stop all aid and assistance to the West African country, and may go for military action to wipe out the Islamic terrorists.
Asked for her comments on Trump’s threat, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told the media that the Nigerian Foreign Ministry issued a statement, stating that the US’s claims did not reflect the current realities in Nigeria, and the government had remained committed to fighting terrorism, strengthening interfaith harmony, and protecting the lives and rights of all its people.
As a comprehensive strategic partner, China firmly supports the Nigerian government in leading its people to follow a development path in line with its national conditions, Mao said.
“China opposes interference by any country in the internal affairs of other nations under the pretext of religion or human rights and opposes the arbitrary use of sanctions and threats of force,” she said.
On the reports that Venezuela is seeking missiles and drones following a dozen US strikes on the boats in the region on the suspicion that they carried drugs, Mao said China is opposed to the use of force in the name of fighting drug cartels.
China supports enhanced international cooperation in combating transnational crimes, but opposes the use of threats of using force in international relations, and actions that undermine peace and stability in Latin America and the Caribbean, she said.
China is against unilateral so-called law enforcement operations against vessels of other countries that exceed reasonable and necessary limits, she added.
“We hope the US will carry out normal law enforcement and judicial activities within bilateral and multilateral legal frameworks,” Mao said, without mentioning whether China will support military equipment to Venezuela.
“China’s normal exchanges and cooperation with Venezuela are conducted between sovereign states, without targeting any third party, nor are they subject to interference or influence by any third party,” she said.
Source: orissapost
The National Security Adviser (NSA), Malam Nuhu Ribadu, on Monday, held a crucial meeting with service chiefs and heads of security and intelligence agencies in the country
The crucial meeting took place at the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Abuja, followed reports of a directive by the President of United States, Donald Trump to prepare for possible military action in Nigeria over the alleged genocide of Christians in the country.
Security sources hinted that the emergency meeting, which began in the afternoon was aimed at assessing the implications of Trump’s statement accusing the Nigerian government of failing to protect Christians from Islamist militant groups.
Trump’s remarks, made late Saturday, stated that the U.S. military was being prepared to “act in Nigeria to tackle Islamist militancy” a statement that had triggered widespread concern across diplomatic and security circles in Abuja.
Reports said that the NSA convened the session to coordinate a unified national security response and review intelligence assessments on the potential fallout of the U.S. president’s pronouncement.
The outcome of the meeting is expected to be communicated through official channels from the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (NWC) has suspended the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade; National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu; Deputy Legal Adviser, Okechukwu Osuoha; and National Organizing Secretary, Umaru Bature for one month.
The suspension comes on the heels of the judgement of the Federal High Court On Friday, which stopped the party’s planned national convention.
The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, told journalists in Abuja on Saturday, that the decision followed an emergency meeting of the national working committee, which was held in Abuja.
