By Femi Fani-KayodeOur coming to Umuahia today, as the media team of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) Campaign Organisation, to address you on very
salient political issues less than three weeks to the Presidential
election in our country is very significant.Since you are part of the vibrant Nigerian media we are convinced that
you are all aware of our efforts, over the last few weeks, to put the
political issues in Nigeria in proper perspective while presenting the
very robust and time-tested stewardship of our presidential candidate,
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to the Nigerian electorate.In the process, we have beamed a searchlight on the camp of our
opponents, while specifically bringing into the public space the very
dark side of the All Progressives Congress (APC). We have exposed
their perjurous, corruptive and crooked ways in our nation’s history,
our current affairs and our political life. Along the line we have
succeeded in putting their Presidential candidate, General Muhammadu
Buhari in a fix, marking him down on the basis of his glaring
incapacity to do anything meaningful or positive for our nation and
for bringing our nation into utter shame and disrepute before the
international community whilst he was military Head of State and when
he led the most brutal, sadistic and callous government in the history
of Nigeria. Under Buhari between 1983 and 1985 Nigeria was turned into
a massive slave camp in which manmy were tortured, brutalised,
humiliated, killed and sent to jail without any due process or
evidence of wrongdoing.That is his legacy to the Nigerian people. We thank God for the
courage of General Ibrahim Babangida and all those that risked their
lives and saw fit to remove him from office in 1985. Yet today,
General Mohammadu Buhari, that same man that staged a coup d’etat
against a democratically-elected President in 1983, that same man that
was himself removed from office in 1985 by another coup d’etat and
that same man after whose removal our people rejoiced in the streets
now wants to be a democratically-elected President himself. He has
tried three times before and has failed yet he keeps trying. We
consider it as part of our job to stop him from achieving this
ambition because we regard him as being nothing but a plague and an
affliction to the Nigerian people.Our drive in this regard is to help obviate a catastrophic political
future for Nigeria simply by ensuring that a wrong candidate does not
ride on the crest of crass propaganda to become the President of this
country. It behoves on us and other well-meaning Nigerians to ensure
that a man whose health status, academic records and mental state are
shrouded in secrecy does not crawl into power through the back door to
lead Nigeria.We can assure you that our campaign, since we started, has been issues
based. In this regard we believe that Buhari himself, his utterances,
his persona, his actions over the last few years and his record in
public office are in themselves major and relevant issues. We intend
to continue to subject General Buhari to public scrutiny and we will
not derail in keeping to that standard until our candidate, President
Goodluck Jonathan, a man of destiny, compassion and character, wins
the coming Presidential election.Gentlemen of the media, we are in Umuahia to look into a very touching
and mind boggling issue. We came into this beautiful city last night
after a tour of some states in the Eastern region over the past three
days. During our tour we met with some key Ibo leaders. We attended
caucus meetings with them and the questions that kept on coming up on
the issue of the presidential election centered on the role General
Muhammadu Buhari played in the very sad events of the night of January
29, 1966, when a coup d’état took place in our country and when no
less than 300 Igbo army officers, a sitting Head of State, General
Aguiyi-Ironsi and a serving Governor of the old Western Region,
Colonel Fajuyi, were killed in the most brutal fashion in less than 24
hours. It is important for us to look into this today, considering the
fact that General Buhari is aspiring to be the next President of
Nigeria.The Nigerian people have a right to know the truth about Buhari’s role
in the tragic events of that night and they do not deserve to be kept
in the dark. We deserve to know who did what, who to and how many
times. That is the message that I got from most of the igbo leaders
that I met on this tour and that is certainly the feeling of most
Nigerians. The days of feeding our people with half-truths and telling
them not to discuss the ugly events of the past are long over. It does
not stop there.The other issues that were raised centered on the role General Buhari
allegedly played during the very tragic events in the core north in
the mid-60’s just before the civil war when no less than 100,000
innocent and defenceless Igbo civilians, mainly women and children,
were killed within a period of three months by irate and well armed
local mobs. Many have asked and wondered whether it is true that
General Buhari was amongst those that covertly orchestrated and
encouraged those killings and that supported the slaughter of these
innocent and helpless citizens. We consider this issue most relevant
today because this same man, who some people have alleged was involved
in this carnage and genocide, is desperate to become the next
President of Nigeria.We give thanks to God that Igboland is now a vital and integral part
of a united and indivisible Nigeria and that the pains of the civil
war are many years behind us yet the wounds inflicted on our minds
must be healed, and completely too. This can only be done by the
exposion and enunciation of truth and when those that committed the
most heinous atrocities against innocent civilians, women and
children, even many years ago, are brought to justice. This can only
be done after the souls of the innocents that were slaughtered are
appeased by ensuring that anyone, no matter how highly placed, that
committed or encouraged any crimes against humanity or ethnic
cleansing, at any point in time in our history, against their fellow
Nigerians are brought to book. The best way to do that is not to
dismiss these grave and serious questions because this man was accused
of participating in the terrible atrocities against the Igbo both on
January 29, 1966 and during the course of the massacre of innocent
civilians in the north in September, October and November 1966.At this juncture we must ask this painful yet pertinent question: is
it true that the blood of the Igbo people ran up to the knees of
General Buhari on the night of July 29, 1966. These questions were put
to General Buhari during the sitting of the late Justice Chukwudufu
Oputa-led panel in 2001, and instead of him to answer them
accordingly, for attendant matters to be settled once and for all and,
if these allegations were indeed true, for him to ask for forgiveness,
General Buhari refused to turn up and answer them. Instead of coming
clean and making use of this historic opportunity to settle the matter
once and for all and make peace, Buhari went to court to ask for an
injunction to restrain the Panel from compelling him to come and give
answers. This is very unfortunate and it is nothing but a sad and
graphic reflection of his unrepentant and vicious mindset. The truth
is that it is because he failed to face the Oputa Panel and answer
those questions 14 years ago that we are still asking those questions
today.The Igbo people of the Eastern Nigeria have suffered immeasurably over
the years in this country and we are glad to say that in the past two
years, they have been able to hold their heads high under the
leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan. We are also happy to say
that this is the time for the Igbo , who are full blooded Nigerians
like every other person in this country, to rise up and show General
Buhari and anyone else who may have had a hand in the atrocities that
were committed in the ’60s against them that they were, indeed,
wronged.The only way the Igbo can do this is by refusing to vote for General
Buhari in the coming Presidential election and we do not think that
any self-respecting igbo man would vote for a General who many believe
may have participated in the killing of their people, both on July 29,
1966 and in the ’60s when the pogrom took place. Again it does not
stop there.During the Nigerian civil war, one of the most terrible and barbaric
acts that ever took place was in Asaba. That was when Federal forces
marched in and liberated Asaba from the control of Biafran soldiers
during the civil war. The Federal troops that re-took Asaba ordered
every single igbo male civilian, including many young boys, to
assemble at the center of the town. After doing that, they lined them
up and shot every single one of them in cold blood. These were not
soldiers but unarmed and defenceless civilians. This was a wicked
act, a monumental tragedy and it has become a sore point in the
history of our country. I was in Asaba two days ago during this tour
and I could not but remember and ponder on that ugly and shameful
episode.It is important for us to remember that day because one of the
allegations against General Buhari that was to be put to him at the
Oputa panel was that he was amongst the division that took part in the
massacre and that ordered those killings. If this is true it makes him
an automatic candidate for the International Criminal Court at the
Hague for crimes against humanity and war crimes. Since he refused to
face the Oputa panel to answer these questions, we are here today,
offering him the opportunity to do so. General Buhari, in essence,
should tell the Nigerian people; whether he was in Asaba at that time,
whether he participated in the killing of those innocent civilians,
whether, if it is true, he is ready to repent now and whether he can
find it in his heart to apologise, not just to the Igbo people, but to
the Nigerian nation for these acts of genocide.We considered it germane to ask these questions here because we are on
the soil of Igboland. This is because it is the sons and daughters
from this soil that suffered the pains of the atrocities that were
committed. It is also relevant for us to ask these questions here in
Umuahia, the epicenter of Igboland and the birth place of General
Agunyi Ironsi, who was the first Igbo to ever become the Head of State
of Nigeria and who was killed six months after he took office. All
along, concerned Igbo leaders have been asking these questions in
hushed tones and they all want answers.Our duty as a responsible, compassionate and civilized campaign
organisation is to put the questions to General Buhari and demand
explanations from him especially in view of the fact that he is
seeking the mandate to run the affairs of this nation.Besides the mind boggling allegations against General Buhari in the
massacre of Ibos in the ’60, we would also like to express our doubts
about his ability and competence to manage the economy of our country
if elected President. We say this because we are mindful of the fact
that he has repeatedly failed to display the discipline, acumen and
creativity that is required in starting and managing a personal
business for survival years after leaving office as Head of State.We allude to this against the background that other retired Generals
and Heads of State that we know in Nigeria including General Olusegun
Obasanjo, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, General Abdulsalami
Abubakar, and others have been investing in farming, tertiary
education, oil and gas and other enterprises.If General Buhari has been receiving pension, gratuities and other
financial benefits like other retired Generals from different
quarters since he left Government, he should tell the Nigerian people
which business venture he has ever set up for his own well-being and
that of other Nigerians. We believe that our dear General would have
done himself proud even if all he could do was to set up a pure water
manufacturing business that could keep younger Nigerians around him in
gainful employment. Yet even this he failed to do. This is a man that
wants to be elected President of a country that has the largest
economy in black Africa..We found it painful to contend that what General Buhari, a former Head
of State of Nigeria has been doing often times is proclaiming himself
poor with a saintly gesture that portrays him as Mr. Clean. This is
far from the truth!We will not forget to mention that since he left office, the only
national assignment General Buhari handled was the Chairmanship of the
Petroleum Technology Fund (PTF) which eventually exposed his inability
to handle such critical and sensitive tasks.Indeed, the Haroun Adamu Report on PTF exposed the other side of
General Buhari as it indicted the PTF interventionist agency he
headed. It was stated in the report that the sum of N25 billion
disappeared from the coffers of PTF under Buhari’s leadership. The
indictment of the Buhari’s PTF is a moral burden on him, most
especially on the issue of corruption against which he has been
claiming to be a saint. The question now is; can Nigerians credit this
man with the ability to manage a huger task of running the affairs of
a complex country like Nigeria, given his performance at PTF?By way of contrast we are delighted that President Goodluck Jonathan,
our Presidential candidate, has continued to stand tall. Today, his
government has managed to achieve a soul-lifting record by re-writing
the story of the Igbo in Nigeria, given the numerous federal projects
his government has cited in the every part of the south-eastern zone
of Nigeria.His unflagging love for the south-east zone has crystallized in a high
number of Igbo sons and daughters serving in the present Federal
Cabinet. President Jonathan’s government, as you know, was the first
to appoint an Igbo military officer as the Chief Of Army staff.
Records have shown that it is only the government of President
Jonathan that re-constructed the Enugu International Airport while
also remodeling the Imo Airport. Indeed, the conversion of the Enugu
Airport to an International Airport is considered critical to the
economic survival of the people of the Southeast. We are happy to list
the ability of people from south-east to tap from the You-Win
initiative of the Jonathan’s government for economic benefits.The government holds the credit for constructing the Enugu-Port
Harcourt dual carriage way as well as the rehabilitation of the
Enugu-Port Harcourt rail-line. We will not forget to mention the
construction of the second Niger Bridge which was started by President
Jonathan.The south-east states have also benefited from the progress recorded
by the education sector under the government of President Jonathan
with federal universities built in Ebonyi, Abia, Imo and Enugu states.Let me seize this opportunity to dispel the shameful deceit and
propaganda of the Governor of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha. He
has said that the Igbo people should not waste their votes by
investing them in our Presidential candidate on the basis that the
rest of Nigeria will vote for Buhari. This is a lie from the pit of
hell. Okorocha knows very well that all parts of Nigeria are rooting
for President Jonathan, including the north where General Buhari hails
from. We trust that you will never be cowed by the APC’s cheap
propaganda and false claims.All we can tell doubting Thomas like Okorocha is to wait for the
outcome of the March 28 Presidential election which will ultimately
teach Buhari and APC the most bitter lesson of their lives.We take this opportunity to congratulate our host and friend Governor
Theodore Orji, a faithful, dependable and committed leader of the
PDP, for the wonderful work that he has done in the state over the
last eight years and we commend him for his courage, steadfastness and
rugged determination whilst steering the affairs of Abia. Before
Governor Theodore Orji became governor of Abia state the state had the
notorious title of being the nation’s kidnap capital. He came on the
scene and within a short period of time he reversed the trend, put an
end to kidnapping and transformed the state into one of the most
peaceful and safe, crime-free states in the Federation.This he achieved amongst many other things for the good people of
Abia. He is a great governor and not only has he done Abia proud but
he has also done Nigeria and the PDP proud. We register our
unflinching support for his ambition to go to the Senate in the April
elections and we have no doubt that he will prevail and win an
outstanding victory.We also register our support for all our other candidates for the
Senate, the Federal House of Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly
in the coming elections. A special mention must be made of our
governorship candidate for Abia state, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, who is a
profoundly good man and who will make an outstanding governor. We urge
the people of Abia state to support him and all our other candidates
in the March 28th and April 8th elections.On a final note, we are encouraged by the love that the people of the
South-East, both at home and in the diaspora, have been professing for
our Presidential candidate. We would like to take this opportunity to
use our presence in Umuahia today to encourage everyone in the zone to
continue to show their support for President Jonathan by trooping out
en-masse on March 28 to vote overwhelmingly for his re-election and to
ensure the continuation of his transformation agenda.
President Jonathan has all it takes to win the coming Presidential
election. He will win by a landslide whilst General Buhari and the
opposition will suffer yet another earth-shaking defeat. This defeat
will ultimately put paid to their follies and anti-democratic
posturing.I thank you for listening