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It is well known that any attempt now
to openly link President Goodluck
Jonathan with a plot towards the 2011
presidential race is considered as too
sensitive .That is why the presidency is
always quick to officially deny any one
linking the president with the race.But
the presidency may be fighting a lost
battle in trying to convince people that
Jonathan has not decided yet.Of course,
the presidents position has not been
made official but it is an open secret
that Jonathan will run for the
presidency.That is the view within very
key political circles across the
country.Many believe that the
president’s body language indicates he
is keen on contesting.
I have nothing against President
Jonathan running for president in
2011.He is young, clear-headed , highly
educated and apparently very level
headed and rational in his conducts.His
choice of a vice president,Namadi Sambo
has further shown that he is determined
to maintain a truly civilian team for
the race ahead.Initially insiders said
General Aliyu Mohammed Gusau might have
been reappointed in order to make him
vice president and work towards
2011.And given the hints emerging from
official circles, even Gusau believed
the plot and he seemed to have high
hopes of becoming vice president .Such
elevation would have given him an
advantage over General Ibrahim Babangida,
his bossom friend who is severely
determined to run in 2011.But Gusau’s
Veepee hopes came crashing like a pack
of cards with the announcement of Sambo
as Jonathan’s deputy.Gusau was reported
to have been thoroughly disappointed.
Some said this choice may be the
brainchild of Jonathan and General
Theophilus Danjuma who are united in
their desire to ensure a new political
reality.Some others said the emergence
or Sambo as veepee is IBB’s first
victory over Gusau and his
associates.Sambo is IBB’s associate.And
it is believed the Maradona may have
pushed for Sambo as part of his
strategic calculations.How IBB will gain
from this remains unclear to me because
it is always unwise to as anyone to hold
power in trust.Because power is so
tantalizing that the man entrusted with
it may become even more interested than
the master wishing to pull strings from
behind the scenes.Some of those who
backed late General Sani Abacha in his
plot to sack the interim government ,
hoping that the general would hold
power briefly and relinquish it later
are not alive to even regret it and
those alive are too stunned to admit
their mistake of 1993.So If IBB thinks
Sambo may do his bidding,he needs to
think twice.But there are also who say
Sambo is more of Gusau’s friend than
IBB’s.Some curious claims.If so why was
Gusau sad at his emergence as VP.Why is
the NSA said to be unhappy with Jonathan
now?
Whatever it is, that Sambo’s political
future is tied firmly to that of
President Jonathan.In political cirles,
we hear that Jonathan in deed made up
his mind to run.Despite his government’s
well crafted air of aloofness and
seeming indecision on the matter,
insiders say he will be candidate .The
official rigmarole or footdragging now
is fallout of the PDP zoning formula
which seems to be creating problems.The
party has a formula which has zoned the
presidency in 2011 to the North.I
believe this zoning stuff was a
mistake.But that is the PDParrangement.
That is why many northerners see the
2011 race as the turn of the North.Many
Governors are known to have the
presisency in their sights.And they
lobbied to be veepee hoping to use it as
launchpad for the 2011 race.IBB is in
the race because he believes the PDP
arrangement will come in handy.He has
even said he will join another party if
PDP denies him the ticket.Even Gusau too
is still believed to be in the race.One
report last week by Peoples Daily
said he may soon resign to further his
presidential dream.Goodluck to all the
northern candidtates.
Truth is that Jonathan seems to have an
antidote to the northern problem.In fact
the anger over the choice of Sambo last
week may not necessarily be about the
new vice president himself.Some insiders
believe Jonathan’s game plan is
beginning to unfold and some northerners
see this plot as a threat to the
Northern political ‘unity’ as if there
has been unity in the real
sense.According to those reading
Jonathan’s moves, they say he is clearly
setting out to carve the Middlebelt zone
as a political base with governorS who
are sympathetic to him.Incidentally,
these governors are Christians.That is
why some are claiming that the religious
tension ahead of 2011 polls may rise.One
has to point out this claims out now so
that that Jonathan will move to douse
these tension before it becomes
uncontrollable.
According to those making the claim, the
choice of Sambo makes a Christian,
Patrick Yakowa emerge as governor of
Kaduna state.A remarkable development,
in my view.Kaduna’s new governor will
have allies from Plateau, Taraba, Benue
that will form a formidable bloc away
from the far north in the months
ahead.In fact there are telltale claims
that Babangida Aliyu of Niger State may
need to sit up otherwise he may lose his
seat to the All Nigeria Peoples
Party,ANPP candidate ,Comrade David Umaru
who is challenging Aliyu’s gubernatorial
election.The Court of Appeal has
reserved ruling on the case.But insiders
suspect that there is a new plot to make
Umaru may win in order to help
consolidate Jonathan’s 2011 agenda .If
Umaru wins,and becomes governor of Niger
state, the ANPP governor is expected to
decamp to PDP before the 2011 polls, all
in the interest of Jonathan.This is the
story making the rounds in the North.No
one is sure whether all is true.May be
its is just rumour being spread to
mobilize against Jonathan. But the needs
to know what is being said about him in
order for him to move to checkmate any
negative consequences from this
dangerous and politically volatile
claims said to be emerging from the war
rooms of President Jonathan.I my view,
it is sad that anyone is still thinking
of a muslim Christian divide at this
time.What is needed is to mobilize
Nigerians of every belief towards
national transformation and
salvation.Religious politics is
unhelpful in a combustible country like
Nigeria
The choice of Sambo may be the
President’s best argument to counter his
critics who may raise religious
sentiments.Truth is that Sambo is a
muslim from Zaria in the current North
West Zone.He should easily get cracking
to counter those seeking to whip up
sentiments against the president by
letting everyone see things as they are
without any jaundiced coloration .
Also, it is equally shocking to hear
some people claim that Sambo was never
in reckoning for his new job.He had
always been .And Insider weekly
listed him among those being considered
in the story published the week he was
chosen.Truth is that Sambo was very
close to late YarAdua without being part
of the negative cabal.He was said to be
so close to late YarAdua that the
former president thought of him as one
of those to back if his health would not
allow him to run in 2011.Insiders knew
this for a fact.So his choice will
certainly ,or may have been deliberately
made by Jonathan to assuage the fears
of the YarAdua insiders as well.The
choice of Sambo may also be a measure
of Jonathan’s loyalty to his former
boss without necessarily bowing to the
Turai-led cabal .
If Jonathan decides to run IBB and Gusau
may have to give way. Of course, it is
expected that the PDP may review its
zoning formula and that will leave the
northern presidential gladiators out in
the cold.Before that is done ,it is
imperative for Jonathan and Sambo to
take preemptive measures to decently
engage aspirants without bulling them
like Obasanjo did .The bullying tactics
may be counterproductive and unhealthy
for peace and prosperity.The greatest
news may however be any announcement
that Jonathan will not run after
all.Insiders say this is unlikely.But in
politics anything is possible.
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