Veteran politician and chairman of the Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC), Buba Galadima, again alleges that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is allegedly planning to rig the 2019 elections because most Nigerians have rejected the President and his ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). In this Interview with INNOCENT ODOH, OWEDE AGBAJILEKE and JAMES KWEN, Galadima stresses that Buhari has no competence and no idea on how to run a diverse country like Nigeria adding that Buhari’s touted integrity has collapsed because of alleged massive corruption in his government coupled with his poor handling of the economy. Excerpts:
Talking about the 2019 general elections, you have appeared severally talking about the chances of the opposition, especially about the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party(PDP) Atiku Abubakar to take over power from the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari. What makes you think that this is a possibility?
It is absolute possibility provided there is a free, fair, transparent and level playing ground for the elections in 2019. But I must add quickly that this government has no intention whatsoever of conducting a free and fair election and I can give reasons. One, they know is of fact that they have not put anything on the table for the people of Nigeria. Two, Nigeria is today worse than when they found it in 2015. Three, nobody, nobody, nobody including those that had worked with General Buhari for 15 years before his becoming President would say they are satisfied with his performance in the containment of security, job provision, inclusiveness of the people of Nigeria. He (Buhari) performed poorly in all facets of human endeavours.
Therefore, he has nothing to show anywhere, except in one zone of the country where it could be said that he has done something or put something on the table for the people of that zone. So, I believe that five zones of this country, even including that one, would vote him out massively and overwhelmingly and don’t ask me how because I have already told you that he has not performed, he has not done anything tangible that you will see.
This is what now manifested during the budget presentation in the National Assembly. People were shouting. They said it was Peoples Democratic Party. No! once you entered the two Chambers of the National Assembly, it doesn’t matter on which platform or the party you are elected, you are working for the good of the people of Nigeria not your party but what he (Buhari) failed to understand was that he was reading lies from a prepared speech and this is why he cannot continue as President of Nigeria again. They just wrote lies to him, he came and was mentioning projects that he has carried out in certain places. These are representatives of the people. Every inch of Nigeria is represented by somebody in the Chambers of the National Assembly and they kept on saying you are lying to his face but because he is not a democrat he cannot understand but that is part of parliamentary decorum.
Just watch the BBC and see how the British Parliament is functioning. The Prime Minister is being told to her face “you are lying” but because the man (Buhari) is a dictator, he will always be a dictator. He feels that he is above those questioning what he was doing. But he was talking absolute trash and absolute lies, things that do not exist. And these are the people that coming from those areas are telling you that it is a lie. If I were he when I go back I will summon all those that brought those things to confirm to me or to show me that really they did not deceive me to go and tell lies in the public. I also heard that they are trying to arrest those lawmakers shouting at him. I think nobody in that Villa has his head correct! If their heads are correct they cannot attempt to arrest any lawmaker.
That is a very strong allegation…
Is it an allegation? If your head is correct would you ever attempt or think of arresting a lawmaker for shouting on a President who told lies before them? I said level playing ground, is because the man knows he is going to lose election and his people said it even yesterday at 3 am this morning. I was with one of his close aides and he told me that Buhari will come back and I said how, are people not going to vote and he said, well as PDP did, they will also write the results. Do unto others as you like others do unto you. If Buhari is a statesman even if PDP as alleged has done what they said they have done, he is a statesman, former Head of State, who knows Nigeria he should not try to do what is wrong. After all, he had promised time without number that when he becomes President he will strengthen institutions of government namely, INEC, ICPC, EFCC, Police, Military to do what is right. Is it what he is doing? Are you satisfied? Are you going to vote for him gentlemen? Tell me, are you going to vote for him?
You said you are sure Buhari is going to lose this election, remember that …(Cuts in)
I said provided there is a level playing ground. He has already decimated one of the indices of making elections correct by refusing to sign the Electoral Act for the fear that to strengthen the Electoral Act of 2018 will stop his people from rigging and they are telling him that once he signs it that is his death warrant. And I challenge him if he is a man, if he is a General that he is called, let him sign the Electoral Act.
INEC has already said that despite the President’s rejection it will still go ahead and conduct the 2019 election with the Card Reader and that is one of the major concerns of the PDP, don’t you think that…(Cuts in)
That is nonsense! Who fought for the Card Reader? I want to beat my chest and say I brought the Card Reader, forced the Card Reader on Nigerians. If you are a student of history you would have known that nobody has spoken about the Card Reader more than myself. You are not going back to the archives. They can use the Card Reader but you cannot tender the Card Reader in Court for authentication by Judges whether what you are alleging is true or false so, is like non – existent. The issue is to make the Card Reader justiciable.
Not many Nigerians really understand and there were certain elements of the Electoral Act which were agreed tripartite bodies of the office of the Attorney – General, representing the Executive, INEC and the Legislature. They sat down to work on that Electoral Act and INEC was working according to what they were putting in the Electoral Act. They are ready for everything that was in that Electoral Act, so why did he torpedo it? Because some persons from Kaduna and Borno and others came to him and said if you lose election, you are a former President they will allow you to go and settle in Daura or Kaduna peacefully, but the PDP will slaughter us. Who are they? It means they have done something wrong. What are they afraid of?
Buhari has been touted as a man of integrity and…(Cuts in)
Where is the integrity? Show me your friends and I will tell you who you are. He is with Abba Kyari, he is with Babachir, he is with Akpabio, he is with Uduaghan, he is with every crook, every murderer in Nigeria is surrounding him.
But there are those like Kano State Governor Abullahi Ganduje who have promised to give Buhari five million votes. How do you react to this?
Thank you for reminding me of Ganduje. You are just reminding me that Buhari will not conduct elections but they will write the figures. He knows and I know and everybody here knows that every Nigerian has one vote. Where will Ganduje get the five million votes to donate to Buhari? It means it is donation not election. What does the Electoral Act say or the constitution; one man, one vote. But Ganduje is one man five million votes. Where did he get the five million votes from Kano from 3.5 registered voters? So, it means there will be no election. If Buhari is a man of integrity, he should never be associated with people like Ganduje, like his candidate in Imo, Hope Uzodinma and other people. They shouldn’t be his candidates.
Can Buhari now come and tell me what his government did with the school feeding? Are they feeding any student in your village?Tell me, N-Power who and who are benefiting? Let them publish the list of beneficiaries of N-Power, local government by local government. You will see how nepotistic Buhari’s government is. After all less than ten percent of those they claim are benefiting from N-Power, they are just stealing the money.
Trader Moni, who budgeted for that money? You just bring $300 million and share among your friends, political party and use it for election and you want Nigerians like us and intelligent people to believe you? They will account for that money.
Where is the money missing in NEMA? If Buhari is a man of integrity, let him probe them. That is when we will know that he has integrity. It is not rhetoric. I can talk from morning till evening, does that make me an honest man? You can only see honesty in me from the way I speak to you, looking at you eyeball to eyeball. You can see me from my environment. Look at my house. I was everything: Director of Delta Steel Company two years, Director Ajeokuta Steel Company two years, Director of two banks, Director of an insurance company. I was Maiduguri town Engineer; I was Maiduguri area engineer, Project Engineer/Secretary Schools Building Committee Rivers State. In 1975 I managed an account of N300 million, equivalent of 500 million United States Dollars. Yet, I live in boys quarter, two-bedroom. If you are looking for honesty, I am more honest than Buhari. And let’s come to debate, me and him.
The South West geopolitical zone is depending on political gladiators like Bola Tinubu, Fayemi and others to generate votes from that region for Buhari. How will PDP handle that?
You mean to steal votes for them? They are not generating any vote. Nobody has the honour and integrity to follow them from the South West. The people of the South West are very intelligent and good people; they know what is good for them and what is good for Nigeria. They always stand for what is best for Nigeria.
How optimistic are you of the South West voting for the PDP, knowing full well that there are complaints in some quarters that PDP did not give the slot of vice presidential candidate to the zone?
What did the constitution say? The Vice Presidential Candidate can come from anywhere. It is left for Nigerians to vote for him. There are candidates from all over Nigeria. That is democracy. It is because you don’t know democracy; you don’t know your rights. It is the strategy of a political party to win election. Maybe they zoned that to the South East to consolidate what they have. I wasn’t a member of the caucus that picked the (PDP) Vice Presidential candidate (Peter Obi). Maybe that is their thinking. And I hope it works out well for them. I hope the South East reciprocates the gesture done to them.
The issue of Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) and your former party, the Reformed All Progressives Congress R-APC… (Cuts in)
It is not my former party. I am still R-APC. When they lose election with crooks like Adams Oshiomhole, they will all run back to the PDP. So we will go back, pick the pieces and form a formidable force to checkmate Atiku as President. I am still R-APC Chairman. But Buhari is incompetent; he has no idea about governing a plural society like Nigeria. So he has to go.
What strength can the CUPP garner for the Atiku Presidency?
You mean that your vote does not count? Every vote is important. We are about 60 political parties in CUPP. Somebody can win election with one vote. And they may have families. Even though they will not force their families, you will assume that at least one member of any of the CUPP members may bring one or two people from their families. That is good for us. We don’t intend to write results. That is why every votes count for us. It is them that want to write votes. Are they campaigning? Today, Amaechi wrote an organogram and populated it with people. And he started announcing his subordinates. Buhari phoned him to stop because some in the Villa told Buhari that Amaechi is trying to take over and build himself as the next president of Nigeria. Amaechi carried everything for his approval on his desk. Today, getting to three months, he has not signed.
Some have condemned PDP lawmakers for booing the President at the 2019 budget presentation and that they should have accorded his office maximum respect. How will you react to that?
Don’t worry. It is because they are not democrats. They are in the same school-of-thought with Buhari. They are dictators. If they know what democracy is all about, you can even pelt the President with water. You can pelt him. He is an ordinary Nigerian, one among equals. We elected him to serve us. He is not our master.
What is your reaction to the latest unemployment figures by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) that 20.9 million Nigerians are unemployed?
You have seen nothing. By January, February 2019, the economy will ground to a halt because the government cannot service debts. And let me say that from Lord Luggard to Jonathan, all the loans collected by these successive governments, is not one-half of what Buhari has committed Nigeria in the last three-and-half years. Where is he getting the money to service debts, let alone to grow the economy? The man has no idea about what is called the economy. In fact, the man looks at your face and gets annoyed. Where did you get the money to eat? Where did you get the money to buy clothes? Where did you get the money to buy good shoes? That is Buhari. We are not asking for poverty, we want every Nigerian to look better.
Recently the President declined assent to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill. And calls by the PDP to its members to override the President’s veto did not yield any result. Why were PDP lawmakers unable to get the support of their colleagues in APC to do so?
That is because those APC members are against Nigerians. They don’t believe in free and fair election. Anybody that joins that APC now is either a crook, a thief, murderer who has shortchanged Nigeria and is running there for protection or that he has been bought like donkey in an open market.
