Ahmadu Adamu Mu'azu, the unelected PDP Chairman, three days ago issued a shoddy press statement scaring people not to vote for Buhari. The ill thought out press statement is premised on a bogus case of Buhari having dictatorial traits, which surprisingly Muazu has shown to have in large abundance even in a democratic setting. I have to alert Nigerians that with no plan for Nigeria’s economic development going forward, except currency devaluation in the face of falling global oil prices, we would have to put up with fear mongering as a tool for the 2015 presidential campaign from the PDP.
Mr Muazu, a two-term governor of Bauchi State and a small time “Democratic Dictator” is now in the business of selling fear of the emergence of Muhammadu Buhari as our next President. A Democratic Dictator is any individual that use democratic means such as elections to acquire power and hypocritically decides to adopt dictatorial methods as a form of governing in a civilian setting. Well, Muazu said Buhari has dictatorial tendencies because the military supreme council under him handed out long jail term sentences to thieves and economic saboteurs during his reign. Muazu said Nigerians don’t want to go back to the era of jailing thieves, and that Nigerians prefer those same thieves to be roaming around and ruling them. Nigerians this time are not afraid; Nigerians are not ready to buy into the fear product and I have heard a lot of them saying, those with charges of stealing Government funds be made to answer.
While it is true that Mr. Buhari, was installed as Head of State in 1983 in a military regime, Muazu who was voted by Bauchi State citizens in a democratic setting, decided to become a “Democratic Dictator”. The citizens of Bauchi decided to waste no time in 2007 in telling him in an unequivocal term: NO WAY! The Democratic Dictator Muazu said at that time that Isa Yuguda, current Governor of Bauchi State, is a non-indigene even though Isa was a serving Minister occupying the slot of Bauchi State.Imagine! Because of his dictatorial tendencies, he forced Isa Yuguda to leave PDP for ANPP in order to contest for the gubernatorial elections. This is one example of work of a real dictator parading himself as a Democrat: denying one freedom of association and democratic expression. Anyone who followed Bauchi Politics of 2007 knows fully well what happened and It was the reason why he lost his bid for a senatorial seat in a humiliating defeat. I hope the politically enlightened Bauchi people will not disappoint us this time around too.
We have equally witnessed how dictatorial Muazu can be in a democratic setting by introducing Political Sharia in Bauchi State in 2002, which has neither served the interest of Muslims nor the Nigerian State. It was this kind of mischievous and failed attempt at introducing Political Sharia, that emboldened groups like Boko Haram to take it upon themselves to establish one. This is why it is more dangerous to have democratic dictators like Muazu than Buhari’s military regime that crushed the Maitatsine sect and ensured that no fake Mallams and Pastors are roaming around inciting violence. It is little wonder that the PDP itself is governed like an aristocratic mafia, for example, it cannot have election for its Chairmanship, it is always by appointment like he came in. A dictator heads the failed party and that is why everyone is complaining after the primaries. If you think I am telling lies find out what happened in their primaries across the states and how their Presidential candidate emerged. The fear product is not going to sell this time around, and its salesman needs to look himself in the mirror and see a democratic dictator in its reflection.
It is very clear to everyone now since the collapse of Soviet Union, that Democracy is the most acceptable form of government. It was not the case 30 or more years ago during the cold war and the battle of supremacy between USA and USSR, hence the many military regimes in Africa and South Americas. There were real dictators of the 80’s and definitely Buhari was not one of them. While Buhari was jailing the thieving political elites when he came to power through tribunals with long jail terms of 150 years, Jerry Rawlings in nearby Ghana was executing them by the firing squad. This is what real dictators do. Why are Nigerians now envying Ghanaians and considering the Jerry Rawling option? Real dictators do not have tribunals with lawyers like Buhari did. Nuhu Ribadu once told us he was a lawyer in those 1984 tribunals and that inspired him to join the police.
For Muazu and his likes, it is the long jail sentences that worry them in all that the 1984 decrees did and so the labeling of the regime as being autocratic. He wants to scare Nigerians from the possibility of a society based on rule of law to the perpetuation of impunity as we have now. Unknown to him, that is how the laws operate even in the most advanced democracies. The investment banker, Bennie Mardoff, for defrauding Americans in 2008, was sentenced to 150 years jail term in 2011 just like Buhari was sentencing thieves in 1984. Ralph Blaigovich, the former Governor of Illinois, for attempting to sell a senate seat (not that he sold it) for $500,000 (80 million naira) in 2008, is in jail for 15 years. For example, if we are to use the former Governor of Illinois’s case for the Bauchi State white paper indicting Muazu for 20 billion naira fraud (111 million dollars), it is possible that Muazu, if he were a Governor of Illinois will be facing a jail sentence of 220 years in the USA if convicted: the kind of jail sentences Buhari Government was handing to politicians in the 80’s. Bob McDonald former Virginia Governor who left office in 2012 is going to a jail for 12 years for accepting bribe as a gift and the amount was less than 500,000 dollars: a small amount using our Nigeria’s “Your Excellency’s” stealing is not corruption standards. In China, where every policy is about development and no pretense for democracy, if one steals the kind of money our Government officials steal; one is not going to jail but face the firing squad….Period. Nigerians have decided they want a country where law and order matters. Nigerians are no fools and are not buying in to the new GEJ theory of stealing is not corruption. Nigerians are saying “Sai Buhari”.
To Muazu and the PDP ruling party, freedom and rule of law is freedom to steal with impunity. Nigerians are waiting for the independent forensic audit into the missing 20 billion dollars, we are waiting for the conclusion of the subsidy scandal investigation, and we are waiting for the implementation of Nuhu Ribadu Committee report on oil theft. If it is for this regime, the wait will be forever. Nigerians have decided that they will not wait forever; we would wait until February 2015 when President Buhari will be voted in and take over. If all these missing and looted funds from the “stealing is not corruption government” were available, they could have been used to defend the current downward spiral of the naira in the currency markets. The only policy option left for them now is the nasty devaluation of Nigeria’s currency, which anyway they are happily doing.
It is up to the PDP goons in Wadata plaza to focus on explaining how continuing their failed economic policies from the Otuekean Economics School of Thought will prevent Nigeria from going in to a dangerous economic recession due to falling oil prices, or they are free to continue their negative campaign and the character assassination of Buhari. Either way, Nigerians are smarter and are seeing through their shenanigans. Nigerians will not continue to take this laying down.
In conclusion, Nigerians will not buy in to the fear mongering tactics of PDP and its democratic dictator head; Nigerians are not ready to double down on the failed policies of this government. For Muazu and his like, the fear product is not going to sell. You are free to leave the country like Buhari said when he comes back to power. See you in Dubai then, the hiding place you came back from.