Igbos Played Significant Role In Buhari’s Victory – Shettima
Adulkareem Haruma
— Apr 2, 2015 | 7 Comments
Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima has dispelled insinuation in certain quarters that the victory of the president-elect, Gen Muhammadu Buhari, was made possible by four geopolitical zones, excluding the south-east and the south-south.
According to him, the Ibos of the South-east ge-opolitical zone were silent forces that played significant roles in the victory of Buhari of the APC at the just concluded presidential elections.
The governor stated this, while addressing supporters after his return from Abuja where he went on Tuesday night to join other leaders of the APC ahead of Buhari’s declaration as President elect.
He noted that leaders of the APC in the south-east stood their ground in stopping the PDP from coming out with outrageous figures as votes from the zone the way it happened in 2011.
Shettima argued that it was for this singular act that votes garnered by Buhari in other geopolitical zones were enough to return him as president-elect.
He said, “Buhari’s election was an pan-Nigerian movement. I have heard some political analysts making some wrong conclusions that the Ibos in the South-east didn’t contribute significantly to Buhari’s victory, but I think they are missing the point because there are two key contributions to winning elections.
“One is to gives votes and the other is to prevent opponent from rigging and both have equal relevance. In the 2011 elections, the PDP got a combined figure of about seven million votes in the southeast, some of these states recorded or so they claimed, having almost 100 per cent voter turn out.
“But in 2015, Ibos in the southeast, especially our leaders in the APC stood very firm, some of them put their lives on the line, resisted all kinds of humiliation and at the end, they prevented another seven million votes from coming out”.
Using the votes from Rivers State as an instance, he said, “In Ebonyi the PDP got less than 300,000 votes, in Abia, the PDP got less than 400,000, even in Enugu the PDP got about 600,000 votes, in Imo also the PDP got less than 600,000 all these were against the big numbers of 2011.
“We all saw what happened in Rivers, if that was repeated in the southeast it would have been a major source of concern for all Nigerians but the Ibos did very well by resisting every step against Buhari so they are heroes as far as I am concerned. This is also the case in some parts of the south-south.
“In Bayelsa, the PDP could have recorded 600,000 or so votes but they got less than 400,000 because of the efforts of our men in Bayelsa who stood firm. In Edo State, Buhari wasn’t far from President Goodluck Jonathan in terms of votes”.
--Mazi K. C. Prince Asagwara:
Much as I disagree with Dipo Eniola's belief that the failure of Jonathan's Presidency depends on his belonging to the ethnic minority group as suggested by the title of his post,'The Irony and sadness of a president from minority ethnic group,' I am disappointed by your reactionary ethnic-craps response. In spite of the fact that Obasanjo only nominated Goodluck Jonathan as vice-Presidential candidate of the PDP to Umaru Musa Yar'Adua in the 2007 elections, you wrongly claimed that Obasanjo foisted Jonathan on Nigerians as President as if to say that Obasanjo knew in advance that Yar'Adua would die in office before the end of his first tenure. In fact Obasanjo played no role in invoking the doctrine of necessity proclaimed by the Senate in elevating Jonathan to the post of acting President when Yar'Ardua was in coma and could not fulfil the constitutional provision of transferring power to Jonathan.
From the above false ground you averred that "Obasanjo's other reason was to spite the people of South-East to prove that a southern minority served as President before an Igbo President of Nigeria. You know Obasanjo, like most of you his Yoruba ethnic members are jealous of the Igbo and their can-do prowess." Although Obasanjo was the President between 1999 and 2007, the key figures in his government were of Igbo ethnic group. The Minister of Finance was Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who received her salaries in dollars, instead of naira, until the late Fawehinmi successfully challenged the unconstitutional act in court. The Governor of Central Bank was Charles Chukwuma Soludo, the Secretary of Security Exchange was Ndidi Onyuike, the Minister of Foreign Affairs was Ojo Maduike, the Minister of Aviation for Six years was Kema Chikwe, Special Adviser to President Obasanjo on political matters was former Governor of Anmabra State, Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife. Andy Nnamdi Uba held court in the Presidency and no one could see Obasanjo without passing through Andy Uba. In the oil sector, Obasanjo inherited Abacha's former collaborators, Emeka Ofor and Arthur Ezenukpo, as government business partners in oil refineries, turn around maintenance and oil project explorations. Rather than jealous the Igbo as you stated Obasanjo believed that they had production potentials that could benefit the nation and that is why his government was strategically dominated by people of Igbo ethnic origin. When you say Yoruba ethnic members are jealous of the Igbo and their can-do prowess, I wonder why Igbo can-do prowess has not transformed the Igbo governed States of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo into New York, London, Paris, Hamburg and Holland. Just like any other States in Nigeria, streets of Igbo States are refuse-clogged and stench beset. Their cities and towns are criss-crossed with open gutters running with stagnant water, fetid, brackish and algae infested just like other non Igbo towns and cities in Nigeria. Since obnoxious and odious leaders cut across all ethnic groups in Nigeria the source of wealth of Igbo millionaires, just like their counterparts in other ethnic groups in Nigeria, is directly related to the centres of Federal, State and Local government administration.You wrote, "If President Jonathan's Presidency ended in disaster, as you stated, it is because the Yorubas of your kind wished him and his fellow Ijaws such ending." Just like Obasanjo, the government of Jonathan is strategically dominated by people of Igbo ethnic origin. A few example would do to overhaul you mentally. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Anyim Pius Anyim, is Igbo; the Director General, Budget Office of the Federation, Bright Okogu, is Igbo; the Chief Economic Adviser to President Jonathan, Nwanze Okeidegbe, is Igbo; the Minister of Finance and coordinating economy, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is Igbo, and her spokesman, Paul Nwabuikwu, is also Igbo; the Governor of Central Bank, Mr Godwin Emefiele, is Igbo; Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, Uche Orji, is an Igbo; The Minster of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alinson-Maduike, is Igbo; The Group Executive Director, Refinning and Petrochemicals, NNPC, Tony Ogbuigwe, is Igbo; the Minister of Power, Chinedu Ositadinma Ndubuisi Nebo, is Igbo; the Minister of Health (up to November 2014 when he resigned to contest for gubernatorial primary election) was Onyebuichi Chukwu, an Igbo; the Minister of Labour and Productivity (also up to November 2015 when he resigned to contest gubernatorial primary election) was Emeka Wogu, an Igbo; when Stella Adaeze Oduah was eased out of the government as Minister of Aviation because of the N255 million bullet-proof car purchase scandal, she was replaced with another Igbo man, Osita Chidoka; and when the chairman of National Population Commission (NPC), Festus Eze Odimegwu, was relieved of his post, he was replaced by another Igbo named, Eze Duru-Iheoma. With the Igbos occupying nearly all the strategic positions in Jonathan's government, if his Presidency has ended in disaster it could not have been because the Yoruba wished him and his fellow Ijaw such ending but because his officials are FICTIONAL ACADEMICS PRODUCING IMAGINARY DEVELOPMENTS which has nothing to do either with their tribal origin.
During the commission of re-painted Enugu Air Port on the 19th of May 2013, the Chairman of the Southeast Governors' Forum, Peter Obi, partly addressed President Jonathan thus, "You have carried us all along and shown abiding interest in, and support for, our zone. For that, Mr President we will continue to be immensely grateful. We have previously expressed our appreciation for the eminently qualified sons and daughters of this zone who you have honoured with various appointments. Please, be rest assured that we will always avail you of our very best and qualitative candidates who are not only proud and honoured to serve, but are also committed to bringing added value to every task you may assign them." Responding, President Goodluck Ebelechukwu Azikiwe Jonathan said, "I thank you for the kind of support you have given to me since I indicated interest in national politics. Till today, I have the strongest support from the Southeast; I want to thank you for that. I am very grateful. I AM PART OF THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY AND I WILL CONTINUE TO REMAIN SO EVEN AFTER NATIONAL SERVICE." Prince Asagwara may please wish to observe that President Jonathan declared Southeast (Igbo land) and not South-south (Ijaw land) as his strongest political support base. In addition to that, he identified himself as a full-fledge Igbo from the Southeast by saying I AM PART OF THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY. The following day, 20 May 2013, Levinus Nwabughiogu conducted an interview with former Presidential Adviser to Obasanjo, Chukwuemwka Ezeife, in the Nigerian vanguard online. To the question, where does the Igbo nation stand in 2015? Chukwuemeka Ezeife answered thus, "I SEE JONATHAN AS AN EASTERN PERSON HOLDING THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT AND PUT THEIR BY PRINCIPALLY THE SOUTH-EAST." What Prince Mazi K. C. Asagwara should know is that Nigerians voted for Jonathan in 2011 to be President of Nigeria but after the election he chose to be ethno-religious President and that is tragic.
I rest my case!!
Date: Tue, 31 Mar 2015 20:37:13 +0300
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re: [africanworldforum] RE: The irony and sadness of a president from minority ethnic group
From: ibk2005@gmail.com
To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
CC: c_ukachukwu@yahoo.com; abudugana2000@yahoo.com; talkhard@yahoogroups.com; skcogbonnia1@aol.com; africans_without_borders@yahoogroups.com; dipoeniola@yahoo.com; omereoha@msn.com; africanworldforum@googlegroups.com; naijaevent@googlegroups.com; africa-oped@yahoogroups.com; naijapolitics@yahoogroups.com; biokonkwo3@gmail.com; naijaobserver@yahoogroups.com; camnetwork@yahoogroups.com; omoodua@yahoogroups.com; NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com; nigerianid@yahoogroups.com; omoodua@yahoogroup.comThis Asagwara is a fool and a bigger fool than Jonathan the clueless one. He invents history to suit his rapacious and greedy Igbo soul.
Where is Umaru Yar'Ardua and Turai his wife in all these? Who fought to get the stupid Jonathan sworn in as President when Yar Ardua died? Yoruba! Osun state voted massively for Jonathan in 2011. Asagwara the blind bat did not see that.
The Igbo surrounded Jonathan and held him hostage to destroy himself and destroy Nigeria. Dieziani, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala held sway looting. Obasanjo who engineered Jonathan to the top became his enemy. Yorubas who voted for him massively were paid back with treachery and relegated in his government.
Asagwara is deluded and mentally unstable. It was Yoruba jealousy that made Patience Jonathan the illiterate to turn Wike and Amaechi into arch enemies? He hates Yorubas and is so envious of them that when an Igbo commits suicide in his village he will attribute it to Yoruba jealousy!
When Ojukwu wanted to steal the crude oil belonging to the whole of Nigeria and his arse was whipped Asagwara fantasised a Yoruba must be blamed narrative and believed his insane narrative. It is Yorubas who kill Igbo in the North? How many Igbo has ever been killed in Yorubaland where they prosper and still show ungrateful disdain to their Yoruba benefactors to the extent of claiming Lagos along with Port Harcourt and Calabar and Abuja.
The greed of Asagwara and his ilk and type among the Igbo that is the Igbo problem and the problem of the Igbo. Yorubas are builders of Nigeria. We are not destroyers like the rapacious greedy Asagwara-type Igbo.
Cheers.
IBK
On 31 Mar 2015 17:54, "'elombah daniel' via USA Africa Dialogue Series" <usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com> wrote:I believe the VC is electoral returning officer for Bayelsa StateOn Tuesday, March 31, 2015 4:26 PM, "Asagwara, Ken (EAL)" <Ken.Asagwara@gov.mb.ca> wrote:
--“. I continue to ask, how did a man like Goodluck Jonathan rise to the important position of the President of Nigeria?” Dipo EniolaDipo Eniola:Your above question and its corollaries should be directed to your uncle Obasanjo who, believing Jonathan would be his puppet whereby, he Obasanjo would be indirectly in-charge of determining after he left office who and which sections of Nigeria gets what, when and how foisted Jonathan on Nigeria. His self-serving agenda backfired and he turned against the man he had foolishly believed would be his puppet President.His other reason was to spite the people of the South-East to prove that a southern minority served as President before an Igbo President of Nigeria. You know Obasanjo, like most of you his Yoruba ethnic members are jealous of the Igbo and his can-do prowess. I wish that Jonathan had governed like a real Ijaw man, with no nonsense attitude to guarantee his elected two terms in office. And I hope other South-South ethnic nations have witnessed your usual Yoruba betrayal and political chicanery against their son, a first minority elected President of Nigeria.If President Jonathan’s Presidency “ended in disaster” as you stated, it is because the Yorubas of your kind wished him and his fellow Ijaws such ending. And such indeed, “is regrettable”. Now, you folks of the SW should declare owambe and dance to your heart’s desired content. For a Nigerian like me, it is not what happens now in this election that worries me. It is the day after. And I hope you know what that means.Cheers.Mazi KC Prince AsagwaraFrom: naijaevent@googlegroups.com [mailto:naijaevent@googlegroups.com]
Sent: March-31-15 9:53 AM
To: naijaevent@googlegroups.com; africanworldforum@googlegroups.com
Cc: NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com; talkhard@yahoogroups com; omoodua@yahoogroup.com; Odua; africa-oped@yahoogroups com; kenyaonline@yahoogroups com; kenya-diaspora@yahoogroups.com
Subject: The irony and sadness of a president from minority ethnic groupFolks:If Buhari's ascendancy to the Presidency can reduce corruption by a mere 10-15 per cent, then his election may after all worth all the efforts. The irony and sadness in all of this is that the joy of first electing the person from a minority ethnic group as president ended in disaster is regrettable. It would have been nice if it were not so. I continue to ask, how did a man like Goodluck Jonathan rise to the important position of the President of Nigeria? He obviously is clueless; ill-prepared; ill-suited for the office. His educational background is questionable. He lacks charisma. He speaks poorly. His diction is horrible. He could not read and deliver what had been written for him. His appearance on the world stage lacks sophistication. Overall, it as an understatement to say that he is weak and very incompetent. Thus, with his inadequacies, Jonathan can never grow on the job even if he spends 20 years on the exalted position of President of Nigeria. He is that bad. I hope he leaves quietly. He will be doing Nigeria and Nigerians a lot of good by not challenging the results of the election.-dipo-
From: 'Wharf A. Snake' via AfricanWorldForum <africanworldforum@googlegroups.com>
To: "africanworldforum@googlegroups.com" <africanworldforum@googlegroups.com>
Cc: "NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com" <NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com>; "naijaevent@googlegroups.com" < Sent: Tuesday, March 31, 2015 6:48 AM
Subject: Re: [NIgerianWorldForum] Re: [africanworldforum] Where is VC of Otueke?General IW:You are demagoguing right about now on this topic. Let me ask a question: do you agree that your fellow general, Olusegun Obasanjo is corrupt? Now if I ask what evidence do you have? If it quacks like a duck and waddle like a duck then it is a damn duck. No evidence necessary. Yours below resembles one of Prof. Adeboye who is always asking for references and evidence when it is one of his own but quick to characterize others.
Sent from my iPhoneEjo ni Mushin - Prince
On Mar 31, 2015, at 2:28 AM, Ishola Williams <isholawilliams@gmail.com> wrote:What evidence do you have that the Prof is in that circle?Is it for accepting to be a VC of a new University?You may know his past more than I do.For now,he is serving his COUNTRY with integrity until it is proven otherwise.You are doing yours too as you deem fit.iw
'Yeye Rolling' via AfricanWorldForum <africanworldforum@googlegroups.com> wrote:
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