Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has
made it clear to the new national
chairman of the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Adamu
Mu’azu that for him to return to active
participation in the party, President
Goodluck Jonathan should fulfill his
promise not to contest the 2015
presidential election for the second
tenure.
Obasanjo recently made it public that he
would have nothing to do with PDP again
until certain anomalies are corrected. The
new chairman met him recently, with a
view to convincing him to change his
mind.
According to Obasanjo, the meeting to
address his grievances flopped because
he insisted president Jonathan must
honour his alleged promise in 2011 not to
contest the 2015 presidential election. A
promised President Jonathan has denied
making or discussing with Obasanjo.
Obasanjo was also said to have given
other conditions that the new leadership
of the party must meet before he would
change his mind.
They include the restructuring of the party
as well as the correction of the anomalies
relating to the removal of Olagunsoye
Oyinlola as the national secretary of the
PDP and Bode Mustapha as national
auditor in early 2013.
Mu’azu was reported to have, during the
closed-door meeting in Abeokuta,
pleaded with the former President to back
the President’s alleged 2015 interest and
other activities of the ruling party.
It was gathered that Obasanjo told
Mu’azu bluntly to address the issues he
raised in his December 2, 2013 and
January 7, 2014 letters to President
Goodluck Jonathan and former PDP
National Chairman, Dr. Bamanga Tukur.
In his letter to Tukur dated January 7, the
former President accused the PDP of
negating the principles of morality by
giving prominence to a party chief in the
South-West, Chief Buruji Kashamu.
He also said in the December 2 letter that
Jonathan told him that he had not
informed anybody that he would contest
the 2015 presidential election.
Obasanjo had in the letter to the
President said: “Only a fool would believe
that statement you made to me judging
by what is going on. I must say that is not
ingenious. You may wish to pursue a
more credible and more honourable
path.”
Part of the letter reads: “I decided to
cross-check with you. You did not hesitate
to confirm to me that you are a strong
believer in a one-term of six years for the
President and that by the time you have
used the unexpired term of your
predecessor and the four years of your
first term, you would have almost used up
to six years and you would not need any
more term or time.
“I cannot comment much on the
constitutional aspect of your second term
or what some people call third term. That
is for both legal and judicial attention.
“As a leader, two things you must cherish
and hold dear among others are trust
and honour, both of which are important
ingredients of character.”
He had also said that he would like to see
anyone in the office of the Presidency as
a man that could be trusted.
But President Jonathan fired back at
Obasanjo in his letter dated December 22,
2013, faulting the former President’s
claim and accusing him of wanting to
incite Nigerians against him.
On his purported interest in the 2015
election, Jonathan said: “I am still of the
considered opinion that it would have
been best for us to do all that is
necessary to refrain from heating up the
polity at this time. Accordingly, I have
already informed Nigerians that I will only
speak on whether or not I will seek a
second term when it is time for such
declarations.
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