and Atiku Abubakar. Both are ill-qualified to seek the highest office in the
land as the following quotes illustrate.
On Gusau:
"Take Gusau for instance, look at his antecedents; he was Director, Military
Intelligence, then he became Director of Defence Intelligence, after that he
became Coordinator of National Security, he became GOC sometimes and then
Commandant, NDA, and he came back as National Security Adviser.
"After the coup of 1985, he became GOC, Commandant NDA and later as National
Security Adviser to Babangida. After they relinquished power in 1993, he was
made Chief of Army Staff, ...So you see, all these routine is a plan to
accumulate power, which is the whole idea, to concentrate power in one person
for their plan later. This man has never been trained in intelligence, he has
never been trained one day as an intelligent officer, not one day and there is
no coup-d'etat that he did not take part in. He was the one who financed the
coup against Shagari as his Director of Military Intelligence, DMI. Then as the
Director of Defence Intelligence, he was part of the coup against Buhari, and
there was an attempt on Babangida himself which he had knowledge of, which has
not been reported. Gusau was the one who brought Shonekan to Babangida to take
over as the Interim Head of State but with him again as Chief of Army Staff with
Abacha, they threw him (Shonekan) out. Abacha, aware of Gusau's antecedents,
decided to boot him out; and after Abacha threw him out, he went into obscurity.
Every one of them dared not open their mouth during Abacha's time. They all went
underground. But when Abacha died, they resurfaced, manipulating again like they
are doing now. They manipulated our system...
"they brought Obasanjo back so that after four years he would go but Obasanjo
outsmarted them. He not only went for a second term but wanted a third term and
by the time he realized that they were playing foul with him, he (Obasanjo)
kicked them out again. He kicked Gusau out. So if somebody was a Coordinator of
National Security since 1985, ex-Director, Military Intelligence before, an
office with which he carried out a coup, ex-Director of Defence Intelligence
they carried out a coup, and as Coordinator on National Security and there were
three coups in all, Vatsa, Orkar and Akinyemi, all these happened, yet you said
this man knows much about security...
"The return of Aliyu Gusau former National Security Adviser, NSA to IBB and
Obasanjo, to the corridors of power means disaster for Nigeria. Acting President
Jonathan Goodluck should better watch his back because Gusau wants to be
president." - Major Al-Mustapha Jokolo (rtd), the Deposed emir of Gwandu and
former ADC to former Head of State, Major- General Mohammad Buhari (rtd)
On Atiku:
Concerning this crook you wrote: "I found Atiku personally to be a very decent
individual; a victim of the mentality in Nigeria that all stinkingly rich
Nigerians are probably corrupt - aided by the vicious attack on him by a
vindictive Obasanjo, who used the EFCC (under Ribadu) and others go after him."
- Bolaji
How could you call a "fugitive from American justice" a "very decent individual?
Please read below:
"In an interview with the Economic Confidential, an online publication, The
former vice-president of Nigeria, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was quoted as saying:
"if the United States was looking for me or my wife, about two or three weeks
ago, we were at the United States embassy, here in Abuja, to renew the passports
of my children who are American citizens, if I have a case to answer they would
have arrested either of us."
Is Atiku being naive or mischievous to expect to be arrested in the American
Embassy in Nigeria?
Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was answering a question on the $180m said to have been
received between 1996 and 2002 by Nigerian government officials as bribe through
a subsidiary of Halliburton, an American company, to facilitate the award of
$6bn LNG contracts.
Alhaji Atiku Abubakar: (Vice President 1999-2007) is alleged to have received
pay-offs in the enterprise. But in the interview, has said that he has no case
to answer over the Halliburton bribery scandal.
In almost all the infamous international Bribery scandal that rocked the world
between 2008 and 2010 that was prosecuted under the USA Foreign Corrupt
Practices Act - Halliburton, Jefferson, Daimler, Willbros and Siemens etc, -
Nigeria will be mentioned and the name of one man featured consistently and
prominently: Alhaji Atiku Abubakar!
The name of Atiku Abubakar surfaced as one of the alleged beneficiaries of the
$6 million bribe distributed by American oil service company, Wilbros Group to
secure contracts for the eastern gas gathering system (EGGS) in Nigeria.
On February 5, 2010, Politico says A two-year Senate investigation into foreign
corruption has shed new light on two key players in one of Washington's most
infamous scandals of recent years — Atiku Abubakar and his wife, Jennifer
Douglas Abubakar.
In the William Jefferson scandal, the $100,000 that was discovered in a Freezer
was to be the first instalment of a bribe to be paid to Atiku Abubakar, then
vice president of Nigeria, for his help in gaining approval from the Nigerian
telecommunications authority for the deal Mody was financing and of which
Jefferson's family was getting an increasingly bigger cut.
Lori Mody, a wealthy businesswoman gave the money to Former Rep. William
Jefferson in a parking lot in July 2005, a transaction secretly videotaped by
the FBI. When federal agents raided Jefferson's home in Virginia two days later,
they found $90,000 in his freezer.
An undercover FBI special agent had driven Jefferson and Mody to Douglas' home
in Potomac, Md., to meet with Abubakar just weeks before Mody gave Jefferson the
money, according to legal documents filed by prosecutors. Abubakar was
reportedly seeking as much $500,000 to help a company that Jefferson had a
secret stake in win a lucrative Nigerian telecom contract.
A federal investigation of Jefferson's activities revealed a wide-ranging
corruption scheme, and following a lengthy legal fight, the Louisiana Democrat
was convicted and sentenced to 13 years in prison, the harshest punishment ever
handed out to an ex-lawmaker. Neither Douglas nor Abubakar was charged with any
wrongdoing.
However, the Senate investigation alleges that Douglas and Abubakar brought
"over $40 million in suspect funds into the United States" from 2000 to 2008 — a
prime example, according to investigators, of the ease with which so-called
politically exposed persons, foreign officials and their family members, friends
and business associates, can move money into U.S. financial institutions without
explaining where the money came from.
The investigation also "substantiated" a $2 million-plus transfer from Siemens
AG, a German electronics company, into a bank account controlled by Atiku
Abubakar and his wife, Jennifer Douglas Abubakar.
Siemens pleaded guilty in Dec. 2008 to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices
Act and paid $1.6 billion in civil and criminal penalties.
Jefferson's lawyers unsuccessfully sought to depose Abubakar and Douglas, as
well another Nigerian businessman, as witnesses for the Louisiana Democrat's
trial, but Atiku and his wife refused to return to the United States to be
deposed or testify in the case.
With tens of millions of dollars from shadowy offshore companies at her
disposal, Douglas — Abubakar's fourth wife — lived a lavish lifestyle in the
U.S., according to the report. Her personal expenses sometimes ran to as high as
$90,000 per month.
Douglas also spent $14 million on the American University of Nigeria, a
Western-style university Abubakar set up in northern Nigeria. The school was
affiliated with American University in Washington, where Douglas, a naturalized
U.S. citizen who was born in Nigeria, received a doctorate in international
relations.
The source of Abubakar's fortune is unclear. He spent roughly 20 years as a
Nigerian customs official, starting businesses on the side while still working
for the government. He left the Nigerian customs office in 1989 and went into
business. Abubakar told the BBC in 2007 that he had gotten wealthy "through wise
investments, hard work and sheer luck of being at the right place at the right
time."
In 1999, Abubakar was elected vice president of Nigeria, a post he held for the
next eight years. Abubakar created a blind trust to control his investments
Through a complicated series of moves, the blind trust was taken over by a shell
company, which in 2003 started sending millions of dollars to U.S. banks for use
by Douglas and an American attorney hired by the couple, Edward Weidenfield
Atiku and his wife, Jennifer Douglas, did not accept summons and subpoenas to
appear before the US court. Instead, they moved their family out to Dubai, and
put their Potomac mansion up for sale.
Arrest warrants were issued against Atiku and his runaway wife, Jamila Jennifer
Douglas-Atiku and the duo would be promptly arrested if they step on US soil.
- http://elombah.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4008:atiku-abubakar-barred-from-travelling-to-the-united-states&catid=47:politics&Itemid=65
Daniel Elombah
Publisher: www.elombah.com
(A Nigerian Perspective on world affairs)
________________________________
________________________________
From: Mobolaji ALUKO <alukome@gmail.com>
To: summadom@gmail.com
Cc: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com; NaijaPolitics@yahoogroups.com;
bunmifm@gmail.com; naijaintellects@googlegroups.com;
ekitipanupo@yahoogroups.com; naijaelections@yahoogroups.com;
NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com; NaijaObserver@yahoogroups.com; OmoOdua
<OmoOdua@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Fri, September 24, 2010 9:43:08 PM
Subject: [Naijaintellects] On the Matter of Atiku's Candidacy {Re: - On the
Relative Putative Candidacies of Buhari, Ribadu and Jonathan { Re: 2011: Buhari
Tackles ACF, Northern Leaders
Dominic Ogbonna:
Today is when I am in a mood for exegesis.
So here goes....
There have been three election cycles in the present Civilian Dispensation in
which I have made comments about presidential choices:
- 1999; in which my candidate of choice was AD/ANPP's Falae over PDP Obasanjo; I
was not a member of AD then.
- 2003; when my candidate was ANPP's Buhari over PDP's Obasanjo; I was NOT a
member of ANPP; [See my essay SUNDAY MUSINGS: The 2003 Presidential Elections
- The Militicians vs the Civilians
http://www.kwenu.com/publications/aluko/2003/militicians_civilians.htm ]
- 2007; when my candidate of choice was Atiku over PDP's Yar'Adua; it was only
by then I had become a card-carrying member of AC. In that election, Buhari
lost some shine for me over his choice of Ume-Ezeoke (I knew some of the
workings of the ANPP then, because Chief Harry Akande is a senior friend, and AC
and ANPP were in close contact on various matters), and his unwise statement
about Iwu on the eve of the election.
I do not see why I cannot like you simply express preference for one candidate
or the other without having to defend myself, but I found Atiku personally to
be a very decent individual; a victim of the mentality in Nigeria that all
stinkingly rich Nigerians are probably corrupt - aided by the vicious attack on
him by a vindictive Obasanjo, who used the EFCC (under Ribadu) and others go
after him. He survived them all, and showed his mettle as a democrat by using
his enormous wealth to fight for himself in court, which I admired.
But unfortunately, it appears that he is now too overly ambitious to be
president of Nigeria that he is making a monumental mistake returning to his
vomit of the PDP. With Obasanjo still as Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and
Nyako as Governor of Adamawa, Atiku has to keep his eyes wide open. Nigeria is
a graveyard for overly ambitious persons who want to be president. I fear that
his time may have come and gone - but I may be wrong, because I think that he
would still make a good president, primarily because he knows his own
limitations (unlike OBJ); knows how to recognize talent, and knows how to make
the best use of them.
So I can still touch Atiku with a ten-foot pole, and you should revise your
priors on that one.
Now we are in the next cycle:
- 2011; if I support Ribadu, it is NOT necessarily because he is ACN, which he
has only joined; but he is NOT even ACN's candidate yet. I have laid out
clearly why I would support him - and none of it is because he is ACN's
candidate.
Throughout Ribadu's tenure at the EFCC, I maintained contact with him, once
going to his office in Abuja to advise him to cool it with all his political
statements (his Chief of Staff then is a friend, a pro-dem of long-standing) I
found Ribadu humble and accomodating, and truly caught between the rock of
thieves abounding in society and the hard place of thieves in Obasanjo's
enclave. Not once have I EVER stated that I could not stand Ribadu; I could
always touch him with a one-foot pole.... So please revise your priors on that
one.
Finally, if you ask me, it appears that Aliyu Gusau will finally emerge as the
consensus candidate of the North - after IBB, Atiku, Gusau and Saraki have
tested their collective quarternary strength in PDP primaries against the
incumbency power of Goodluck Jonathan - in the event that Jpnathan wins that
primary outright, or does not win it at first ballot. Of all four, he has the
least political baggage to contend with.
The fat person has not sung yet.
And there you have it.
Bolaji Aluko
On Fri, Sep 24, 2010 at 11:16 AM, Dominic Ogbonna <summadom@gmail.com> wrote:
>Bolaji Aluko:
>
>Never thought it would happen, but I finally found an issue on which we are 100%
>in agreement. Well, almost. Because I am really only willing to pick the top two
>- Ribadu and Buhari. However, if you put a gun to my head and ask me to include
>a third candidate, I would spring for Atiku, and my reasons are as follows:
>
>(a.) While Atiku is clearly a thief at some level, the charge may have been very
>much exaggerated by his political enemies. From the evidence, it is not very
>clear that he is as corrupt as the others. In fact, he has had some very
>impressive moments in the past:
>
>An Example: Does anyone still remember the 1984 incident, when the Emir of
>Gwandu brought in 53 suitcases? According to professor Wole Soyinka himself,
>"Not only did Buhari dispatch his aide-de-camp, Jokolo…to facilitate the entry
>of those cases, he ordered the redeployment…of the Customs Officer (Atiku) who
>stood firmly against the entry of the contravening baggage". This is the reason
>why Soyinka has not been able to make up his mind on Atiku even today.
>
>
>So the question is: Is the 1984 version of Atiku totally dead, or is he lucking
>somewhere in-there?? Has he been merely rubbished and demonized by the Obasanjo
>gang, the way professor Aluko routinely demonizes the rest of us here? Until we
>know the answer to that question, it is not clear that Atiku is either a saint
>or a villain.
>
>(b.) Where Atiku has been shown to be a thief, of all the PDP candidates, he is
>also the only preferable kind of thief! During Obasanjo's witch-hunt, for
>example, the claim was that Atiku corruptly LOANED government money to Mike
>Adenuga, which Adenuga then used for to qualify for Globacom. Mind you, in the
>worst case, Government did NOT loose the money in that transaction. The loan was
>paid back, fully. Atiku just used political influence to make the money
>available to Adenuga. Not good enough, but not so terrible either.
>
>Why? I like Adenuga very much, because the man has created thousands of jobs for
>Nigerian citizens. Mike Adenuga is doing the kind of productive things that I
>would love to see more in Nigeria.
>
>
>So the kind of thievery that Atiku and Adenuga foisted on the nation is
>preferable to the kind that IBB or Jonathan and his Chief-Of-Staff are foisting
>on the nation.
>
>(c.) Rumour is that virtually all the excellent people in Obasanjo's government
>were head-hunted by Atiku. The ability to nose out competent people is an
>important presidential talent, in my opinion, so if this rumor is true, Atiku is
>almost golden.
>
>
>
>Moving on ...
>
>Bolaji Aluko, are you a man of principle, or are you merely a man of whim and
>blatant partisanship? Come with me:
>
>(a.) Not too long ago, Atiku was your number one presidential candidate! Today,
>you won't touch him with a 10-feet pole!
>(b.) Not too long ago, you wouldn't touch Ribadu with a 10-feet pole! Today, he
>is your number one presidential candidate!
>
>What changed? I will give the audience a hint!
>
>In the one case, Atiku was the flag-bearer of AC, Bolaji's party.
>In the other case, Ribadu is the putative flag-bearer of ACN, Bolaji's party.
>
>So does Bolaji Aluko speak out of principle for what is best for Nigeria, or is
>he merely a party man? You be the judge!
>
>Dominic
>
>
>
>On Fri, Sep 24, 2010 at 7:21 AM, <OlaKassimMD@aol.com> wrote:
>
>
>>
>>
>>Bolaji:
>>
>>As usual--this is an excellent analysis even though
>>I have some issues with some of your suggestions
>>(e.g. Ribadu as President and Buhari as his
>> anti-corruption czar)
>>Why not the reverse?
>>
>>Like you I will not change my citizenship if any
>>of Ribadu, Buhari or GEJ or in fact any
>>other other candidate becomes the President
>>in 2011.
>>
>>The most important deliverable for me in 2011
>>is that the elections be free and fair--
>>No RIGGING, but not necessarily NO RECYCLING.
>>Let the voters decide!
>>
>>Bye,
>>
>>Ola
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>---- Original Message ----
>>From: Mobolaji ALUKO <alukome@gmail.com>
>>To: NaijaPolitics@yahoogroups.com
>>Cc: bunmi fatoye-matory <bunmifm@gmail.com>; naijaintellects
>><naijaintellects@googlegroups.com>; ekiti ekitigroups
>><ekitipanupo@yahoogroups.com>; NaijaObserver@yahoogroups.com; USAAfrica Dialogue
>><USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com>; Naija Elections
>><naijaelections@yahoogroups.com>; NigerianWorldForum
>><NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com>; stevek941@yahoo.com
>>Sent: Fri, Sep 24, 2010 6:57 am
>>Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - On the Relative Putative Candidacies of
>>Buhari, Ribadu and Jonathan { Re: 2011: Buhari Tackles ACF, Northern Leaders
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>Steve Kueberuwa:
>>
>>Please do get a few facts right:
>>
>>1. Tunde Idiagbon was Fulani - and Muslim. He is of the same genre as the
>>Olusola, Bukola, or Gbemisola Sarakis, or the Prof. Ibrahim Agboola Gambari or
>>Ilorin Emir Kolapo Sulu-Gambari: Fulanis with a broad and irrefutable Yoruba
>>heritage.
>>
>>2. Buhari was NOT the only military ruler to share power. Mohammed with
>>Obasanjo; Obasanjo with Yar'Adua; IBB with Aikhomu; Abacha with Diya (in early
>>part) were examples in sharing military power. Notice that those were all
>>North/South, Christian Muslim pairings, while Buhari/Idiagbon was a North/North,
>>Muslim/Muslim pairing. The only virtually total military rulers were Ironsi,
>>Gowon (who shared his powers with his AFRC though), Abacha (in his later days)
>>and Abdusalami Abubakar (partly with Akhigbe). One will admit that Idiagbon was
>>probably the most powerful deputy of the lot, in the same manner that Gore was
>>to Clinton, and Dick Cheney to "Dubya" Bush.
>>
>>Thought that I should make those corrections, for the record.
>>
>>All-in-all, having studied the man closely, I am of the firm conviction that
>>Buhari, despite all the myths:
>>
>>1. is virtually incorruptible, and the kind of Nigeria needs to combat that
>>hydra-headed monster;
>>2. is NOT an Islamist or Fulani supremacist;
>>3. is not blood-thirsty, and certainly not as a civilian politician. His
>>(in)famous military harshness was a reaction to the times.
>>
>>However, part of Buhari's political problems are that:
>>
>>1. he has allowed accusations of him (as a blood-thirsty dictator and a
>>fundamental Islamist/supremacist) to fester too long without countering them,
>>particularly in the South that is deeply suspicious of him. Again, despite its
>>salutary effect, the Buhari/Idiagbon was the only clearly North/North,
>>Muslim/Muslim pairing so far atop the leadership helm of the country. This is
>>probably because he did not conceive of himself as an electable politician for a
>>long time, and hence did not at some point care what people thought or said
>>about him. [Abiola had similar problems.] There was a time (for example) when
>>he was completely withdrawn to himself, between 1983 (when he was toppled by
>>IBB) and 1994/1995 (when he emerged as Abacha's PTF Chairman).
>>
>>2. he has not developed a broad base of identifiably-close advisors around him,
>>leading to him make a number of policy mistakes in the main political party
>>that he has been in (eg in making Ume Ezeoke both Chairman and VP candidate in
>>the ANPP, who ended up messing him up; his very naive endorsement of Maurice Iwu
>>on the eve of the 2007 election, only to be messed up royally in the worst
>>election ever held, etc.) This may have been attempts to soften his public
>>image as a stern fellow. His emergence as ANPP presidential candidate,
>>particularly in 2007, was not necessarily exemplars in democracy (see for
>>example, the recent interview given by Chief Harry Akande).
>>
>>3. As a general and Head of State from 1983-1985 - more than 25 years ago -
>>he is just rightly considered part of the Old Guard - albeit a more respectable
>>part of that guard - but still in the same genre of Obasanjo and IBB. It is
>>very difficult to argue with a straight face against Obasanjo and IBB coming
>>back, and not maintain the same with Buhari.
>>
>>
>>Personally, like Bunmi Fatoye-Matory I LOVE the prospects of a Nuhu Ribadu over
>>Buhari as President, with Muhammadu Buhari as his anti-corruption czar.
>>
>>
>>1. Ribadu is much younger and more vibrant.
>>2. Ribadu has never been accused of Islamism or sectionalism.
>>3. Yes, Ribadu may be more PLIABLE (in terms of corruptibility and stern-ness;
>>more pragmatic, let us say) but he has demonstrated a clear anti-corruption zeal
>>as EFCC chairman, and would have a more willing ear to listen to advisors than
>>the much older Buhari with a long-standing military background. Ribadu, as a
>>former policeman, also has some para-military disciplinary background, but did
>>not progress from a "wetin-you-dey-carry" status like policemen like Anenih,
>>Tafa Balogun, etc.
>>
>>
>>Unlike Bunmi, for me, it cannot be Jonathan over Buhari. GEJ in the grips of a
>>PDP administration may turn out to be terrible, especially because of all the
>>developing pre-election turf wars that are yet unfolding. If he eventually wins
>>the Presidency - and that is a big IF, because who knows whether he will still
>>be a candidate sef?
>>
>>1. corruption and incompetence might go on un-abated; they are sytemic and
>>endemic in the PDP world;
>>2. he will have a weak presidency not only as he tries to assuage wounded
>>post-election minds within his party and the Northern constituency, and:
>>3. he would be LAME-DUCK from Day One (since he says that he would be going
>>only for one term), and a battle for succession, either from the North (who
>>would want it back, since a Southerner would have been president for 6 years
>>effectively) or from the South-East (since GEJ says that he would be merely
>>completing a Northern term), would ensue because of the uncertainty that his
>>presidential candidacy is currently generating.
>>
>>So my choices - if they become candidates - are Ribadu, Buhari and GEJ in that
>>order - and be assured that I would not change my Nigerian citizenship if any of
>>them became/remain President in 2011.
>>
>>Those are the facts, as different from fantasy - and so there you have it
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the "USA-Africa Dialogue Series" moderated by Toyin Falola, University of Texas at Austin.
For current archives, visit http://groups.google.com/group/USAAfricaDialogue
For previous archives, visit http://www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa/ads/index.html
To post to this group, send an email to USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to USAAfricaDialogue-
unsubscribe@googlegroups.com
No comments:
Post a Comment