2019: Kudos, knocks trail Buhari’s declaration
Groups and individuals yesterday offered divergent views over President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term bid declaration.
Thousands of youths took to the streets of Kano and other major cities in the North when the news filtered that President Muhammadu Buhari had declared to go for a second term.
In 2015, Buhari scored 1,903,999 votes in Kano, which is Nigeria‘s second most populous state after Lagos. It was a victory in a key northern state where he defeated his rival, then President Goodluck Jonathan, by nearly 1.7 million votes.
The North Central Media Support Group for Buhari (NCMSG) has described the declaration as a good omen for the APC and Nigerians.
The group, in a statement signed by its Chairman, Hon. Ibrahim Dasuki Salihu Nakande, said Buhari’s declaration of intent to re-contest in 2019 was a clear manifestation that he stood with the best wishes of majority of Nigerians.
The group added that the decision wasn’t only apt and timely, but that it was a sign of absolute dedication of Buhari’s firm patriotism towards actualising his dream of routing out corrupt elements in the nation’s system.
The group called on Nigerians to “ignore the wailing of Obasanjo, IBB and other detractors and support the Buhari and Osinbajo-led administration to success.”
Also, the Director General of the Buhari Support Group Centre, (BSGC), Alhaji Umaru Dembo, said consistency in support of President Muhammadu Buhari over the years made him declare a second term. Alhaji Dembo said, “His open declaration to re-contest in the forthcoming 2019 general elections is timely as he has done well in three years and will be able to continue the good work when elected in 2019,” he said.
But the Edo State Chairman of the PDP, Chief Dan Orbih, described the declaration as a journey that will end in failure.
“The president has been encouraged to embark on a political journey that will end up in failure. Nigerians are eagerly looking forward to see the end of this political experiment of President Buhari,” he said.
This was however countered by the Governorship candidate of the APC in Abia State in the 2015 general election, Dr. Nyerere Anyim, who said Buhari deserved a second term in office to correct what he described as PDP’s 16 year mistake in Nigeria. “It is no longer business as usual, people are now afraid of dipping their hands into the public till,” he said.
But the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) says Buhari does not deserve to contest for a second term in 2019.
The conference, yesterday in a statement signed by its Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu, said there was nothing for the president to show to make him think of seeking reelection.
Ezugwu said Nigeria should be thinking of electing a patriotic politician who understood economic dynamics and inclusive governance.
“It is disappointing that the president will choose to declare for a second term when the security of lives and property of Nigerians cannot be guaranteed. The president’s declaration of intention to run at this time is the height of insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians who are suffering under his administration as he has nothing concrete in terms of achievement to show Nigerians.
“Today, we can count businesses that have either collapsed or are operating under the worst economic conditions in the history of our dear country; with no single high profile conviction in his so-called anti-corruption war in three years. His anticorruption campaign has obviously been turned into a blackmailing tool aimed at painting one political party black, while anyone accused of corruption that joins the APC automatically becomes a saint and must be protected to enjoy his loot. That is not war against corruption,” the statement said.
On his part, Elder Statesman, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai, said he was not surprised with President Buhari’s decision to seek re-election in 2019.
Yakasai speaking in Kano said Buhari’s body language had already indicated that he would re-contest for the office; adding that what transpired yesterday was much-awaited.