Obituary, tombstone for PDP burial ready –El-Rufai

El-Rufai

A former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, has expressed confidence in the ability of the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to send President Goodluck Jonathan packing from Aso Rock in 2015.

The Kaduna State APC governorship candidate argued that Nigerians were no longer comfortable with Jonathan being in the saddle over his alleged long list of “broken promises.”

Writing on Twitter, el-Rufai stated that leading members of the APC have begun putting finishing touches to the funeral ceremony and “obituary” of the ruling party ahead of the 2015 general election.

“The obituary of the Peoples Democratic Party will be written in February 2015 by God’s grace. The tombstone has been carved,” el-Rufai said.

El-Rufai’s optimism about APC’s chances in the 2015 presidential election came amid an onslaught by some pro-Jonathan activists who accused Buhari of being “unelectable.”

Using the hashtag, #ForgiveBuhari, the anti-Buhari commentators stated that it was out of place for the retired general to aspire for the highest office in the land after having truncated a democratic government in 1983.

According to them, Buhari must be made to account for his past deeds before he is given a chance to rule Nigeria in a democratic setting.

One of the pro-Jonathan online commentators, May Ubeku, accused Buhari of subverting civilian rule in 1983, adding that he should not be given the chance to reap from Nigeria’s hard-earned democracy.

“Unblessed are those that forgive Buhari who truncated our fragile democracy in 1983. Remember, we didn’t get back this democracy until 1999. That is 15 years!” Ubeku argued.

One of the prominent anti-Buhari campaigner is a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode. He also stated on Sunday that the emergence of the APC presidential standard bearer as Jonathan’s main challenger had set the tone for the “battle for the soul and future of our nation.”

Highlighting what he described as the APC candidate’s sins, Fani-Kayode stated that Buhari had always preoccupied himself with “shameful and indefensible comments” on key national issues.

“Yet, that same Gen. Buhari who said unacceptable things one year ago is now busy pontificating about his concerns for our nation. A Buhari Presidency would be a disaster for our country,” Fani-Kayode argued on Facebook.

But Imam Imam, media advisor to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, dismissed the insinuation by some online commentators that Buhari is “unelectable.”

According to him, the ruling party parades retired military officers and generals as electoral candidates and key political appointees.

Imam listed leading politicians in the PDP who fall into this category as the Senate President, David Mark (a retired Brigadier General), who is seeking reelection to represent the Benue South Senatorial District for a fourth time, as well as Jonathan’s Chief of Staff, Brig.-Gen. Jones Arogbofa.

“Spare us the shit about Buhari being an ex-soldier and unelectable. The last time I checked a former soldier (Rear Admiral John Jonah) is the deputy governor in Jonathan’s Bayelsa State.

“Besides, in those days, military didn’t rule alone. If you want to castigate soldier-rulers, also kick their civilian partners.

“If you are in PDP, tell Anenih to quit. If you are in PDP, tell my Oga David Mark not to contest election because you don’t want former soldiers in power.

“If still in PDP and you don’t want ex-soldiers in government, please tell the President’s Chief of Staff, Gen. Arogbofa, to quit his job.

“If you are still tired of soldiers in government, and you are in PDP, why not write a letter to the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd) and Gen. Aliyu Gusau (Defence Minister), telling them you are tired of having them around?” he tweeted.

Also, the lawmaker representing the Kwara Central Senatorial District at the National Assembly, Dr. Bukola Saraki, said the opposition party had emerged stronger from the presidential primary.

Saraki said that he was optimistic that the retired general would “reclaim” Nigeria from the ruling PDP.

“APC is strong and ready to reclaim Nigeria. We are going all out for Buhari. We must keep the momentum going. If you have not registered and you can still do so, please don’t delay. Your vote is your power,” Saraki said in a message on his Twitter page.