Nigeria’s Women Affairs Minister, Jummia Alhassan, on Sunday received further bashing over her open declaration of support for former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2019 presidential election.
This time, President Muhammadu Buhari’s supporters under the aegis of Buhari Support Organisation (BSO) Enugu State chapter have thrown their full weight behind his second term.
They said he needed eight years to consolidate on his achievements in the revamping our decayed infrastructure, war against corruption and insecurity, hence laying a solid foundation for economic prosperity.
The group called Alhassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba a ‘liar and agent provocateur’, for claiming that President Buhari told her that he will stay only one term in office.http://dailypost.ng/2017/09/09/atiku-finally-reacts-mama-tarabas-comment-buhari-apc-2019-election/
According to BSO, President Buhari at no time told anybody that he would not run in 2019.
In a statement released on Sunday by the Enugu State Chairman, Anike Nwoga, BSO said “whereas Women Affairs Minister, Jummia Alhassan has the inalienable right to support anybody of her choice for president in 2019, they were of the candid opinion that President Muhammadu Buhari should complete his 2nd Term.
“From all our interactions and that of our leadership, with President Buhari before the election, there was no day the issue of one term was discussed.
”Rather from day one we had always known that the rot left behind by the successive Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) squandermania regimes was deep and that President Muhammadu Buhari needed eight years in order to cleanse the Augean Stable.
”And to be exact he needs to consolidate the war against corruption, insecurity in the land and to consolidate the solid foundation for economic prosperity.
“All we in the BSO is praying to God is to guard and give President Muhammadu Buhari good health to complete the good works he is doing in revamping our critical infrastructure, Enugu Coal, 2nd Niger Bridge and so on.”
Asked about President Buhari’s skewed appointments which seem to have marginalised the South East, Chief Anike quipped: “We are sure Mr. President is going to readdress the imbalance, BSO has always focused more on fixing the decayed infrastructure nationwide which will provide employment, alleviate poverty and cushion poverty. Because we know that there will be overhaul and more appointments, we view appointments as temporary and transient.
“Remember that during the 2015 presidential campaign we told our people that after President Buhari’s 2nd Term, it will be the turn of the South East. For the zoning convention favours Ndigbo because our brethren in the South West and the South South had 8 years and 5 years stint at the presidency respectively after our return to civil rule in 1999. This is why we told His Excellency, Owelle Rochas Okorocha not to challenge the zoning convention.”
Nwoga equally took a swipe at former Vice President Alhaji Abubakar for claiming that he was sidelined after he contributed in installing the President Muhammadu Buhari led APC federal government, arguing that “if he was indeed sidelined, how come Garba Shehu, Dauda Abari, Jumai Alhasssan the agent provocateur and a host of others are close aides of Mr. President?”
Both the social and mainstream media have been agog in the past few days with videos of Alhasan’s Salah visit to Atiku where she threw her weight behind the 2019 presidential ambition of her host, saying even if Buhari decided to run in 2019, she would support her godfgather, the Turaki Adamawa.
She went further to announce that President Buhari vowed to stay for only one term in office, to clean up the mess of the former ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Reacting to Alhassan’s outburst, Nwoga, repeated that whereas she was entitled to freedom of expression, her support for Atiku tantamount to crass disloyalty to the Buhari government and she should therefore resign.
Nwoga recalled that in 2015 APC primaries, Atiku with all the billions of dollars and naira he spent, managed to come a distant third in the APC primaries, trailing former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso who came second and President Buhari, the eventual winner.
He said nothing had changed in the country now to show that in 2019, the tide will turn.
“We know Atiku is her godfather. But, it is difficult for us to comprehend why she should make such an outburst against President Buhari, especially considering what this honest man went through while on medical vacation in London.
“Her outburst clearly shows her disloyalty to the Buhari government and so we see no reason why she should remain in office as Minister. She should be honourable enough to resign and face Atiku’s 2019 campaign.
“On the other hand, we are not surprised that Atiku said he was sidelined. How could Atiku say he was sidelined, when he nominated Hajia Alhassan,Garba Shehu, Dauda Abari and host of others of his loyalist into the FEC and important offices. Atiku’s problem is that Buhari is not sharing money.
“Under the guise of privatization, we know those who sold all the national assets to themselves when they were in the presidency”, Nwoga said.
Contrary to Atiku’s below average score for Buhari administration, the BSO chief said Buhari was building a foundation for Nigeria’s resurgence through his silent social revolution.
Nwoga observed that certainty in public affairs was gradually being enthroned, unbridled corruption being tamed, Boko Haram and other forms of insecurity being contained and construction workers returning back to work while impunity has been bade farewell.
He expressed confidence that in the fullness of time, as evidenced in the presidential system of government mid-term matrix, “Buhari will make balanced appointments, sanitise corrupted institutions, revamp Enugu Coal, jump start ICT University and its campus in Enugu, complete 2nd Niger Bridge and make tremendous input in agrarian revolution.”
In the meantime, there are indications that Buhari may fire Mama Taraba this week.
