There’ll be resentment if PDP wins 2015 polls –Tofa

[Mirror]

Alhaji Bashir Tofa, the presidential candidate of the defunct National Republican Convention, NRC, and chairman Contact/ Alliance/Merger Committee of the All Nigeria People's Party, ANPP, speaks on the June 12, 1993 presidential election, the All Progressive Congress, APC, and corruption in government. AUGUSTINE MADU-WEST reports.

What is your assessment of the President Goodluck Jonathan administration in the last two years?

I can only comment on what this government has not substantially achieved. In the last two years, the economy of individual Nigerians has not improved, so also are infrastructure. It has also not ensured security in the country. There is no economic well-being of individuals. So, you cannot say that dividends of democracy have been delivered.

Yes, we have freedom of speech and that is why people can say whatever they like, but what most people say is that they do not see anything that give them joy or make them happy. There is freedom in everything we do, but what I am saying is that what most people say is not in the expression of happiness; rather it is the expression of anger either with one another or with some other group of people or with the government.

So, there is no positive aspect and I will say that when you put everything on scale, I will not give the government a pass mark. I think most Nigerians are disappointed. We read reports from the Central Bank and other financial institutions that the GDP has increase by 70 per cent, but this is only as far as government is concerned. They measure it by the number of variables they sell and other activities that are not directly related to the public.

What do you think are the problems facing the anticorruption institutions in the country?

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission, ICPC, are well intended anti- corruption institutions. But compared to similar institutions in other countries, where people who are asked to do the job are given free hands to carry out their responsibilities, it is totally different. The EFCC and ICPC, despite their good intention were misused by those who founded it, to hunt rivals and perceived enemies. That is why some of these institutions are no longer dependable, and we always read in the papers that some people have stolen huge sums of money, but nothing is done about it. Nobody that I know has gone to jail because of money stolen, apart from Bode George. That happened because he and his friends were no longer friends and he needed to be punished, but he is not different from others who have gone scot free.

Because there is corruption at all levels, nobody is afraid to be corrupt. The person who is to arrest you is corrupt; the person to take you to court is corrupt and the judge is also corrupt. So, tell me who can touch anybody when corruption is at the top. The only way out is for us to pray to God for help, and we should try and elect honest, corruption free and God-fearing leader who will eradicate corruption from this country. How do we get this kind of leader? That is why I am telling my people that when people contest elections, they should not be judged on the basis of their political parties. People should look deeply at the content of their character, people should forget about their political parties. I think what people should do is to critically examine each of the candidates and come out with a credible one irrespective of his or her political party. He or she should be elected based on the criteria of honesty, kindness, good delivery of duty, free from corruption, and other good virtues despite his or her party.

But when you elect someone based on his party, then we will continue to have this kind of people. You know that finding a leader is a process, some honest leaders don't emerge on their own; it is the society that search for them and sponsor them to whatever position they want for the sake of the country, but if we just allow politicians to contest on their own, then we will never get the kind of leader that we need.

We should resolve that during the next elections, we will only elect those we know will deliver. We should not collect money from those who are corrupt and even if they force us to collect the money, we should not vote for them because they are not going to follow us into the voting room. At least people should make this sacrifice for once in their lives to elect the right person.

And I think Nigerians should decide the kind of leader they want irrespective of tribe or religion. If we continue with the North-West, South-South, South-East nonsense that we are bandying about, we will never get the right leader in this country.

How do you see the emergence of the All Progressives Congress, APC?

First, I must say this merger is a good idea; I don't want to blow my trumpet yet because I was the one who started it, when we were in the ANPP.

We couldn't get anything initially but all these parties have come back together and they are working hard to form the APC. Anything that starts new will have problems, even if you want to start a company, there will be problems. In the APC, there are two major problems; one is sabotage, internally and externally. External sabotage will definitely come from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. We should not be surprised if the PDP tries to sabotage the APC, but internal sabotage is the most serious problem that the APC is facing. There are people who are leading the merger, who are not sincere at all, who will sell out, who are even selling out and whose plan is to do whatever they can to cause problem or distraction in the merger.

That was why I advised them that they have to be ready for this kind of eventualities, they have to be ready to go on despite the odds. If they sabotage it, then we are going to have dictatorship. There are so many ways the PDP can sabotage the party; first the registration will be delayed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, by creating certain hurdles in the process and delay the registration, maybe for another six months. Anything can happen in this country, people are shameless; they are not afraid of anything, they can do anything in this country, they kill people and get away with it.

Another problem that may arise is the sharing of offices and choosing of candidates for elections. By the time you are busy trying to get a good leader, before you know it, the party might have been destroyed by these corrupt internal leaders nominated and appointed because they must be either appointed or nominated. So, unless you are able to reconcile all these properly, the party may be on the losing side.

If the APC is truncated, that will be the beginning of the end of democracy in Nigeria, because we cannot endure a single party always winning elections. There will be a problem and I don't know what that will entail in the future. If I were PDP, I will just lose this next election deliberately in the best interest of this country.

What are the likely implications if PDP remains in power beyond 2015?

There will be resentment throughout the country, because apart from those who benefit either from the PDP or from the government, there is nobody in Nigeria who wants PDP. Everybody is tired of the party, go and ask people on the streets, you will hear their feelings towards the PDP. So, if I were the PDP, I will rest for the next four years, lose the election deliberately, let some new people come, let them try their luck and see if it is easy, and then campaign next time for a come-back. But if they insist by hook or crook to win the election, we are in trouble.

What is your take to the proposed six-year single tenure?

I used to promote it but when I see the damage that was inflicted upon the country in just two years, we can't stand six years of blunder and corruption and there is nothing we can do about it, I think this bridge of four years is enough. Nigerians have to make a good decision again because I do not support it. It is better to have the four year term than the six years; it will give the people the right and time to know whether you are going to come back or not. You may use the six-year single tenure to commit atrocities because you know you are not returning.

You are a principal actor in the June 12, 1993 saga, how do you see the annual celebration of this event?

As far as I am concerned, June 12 is not only a history that should be forgotten but also a fiction pursued by people who have nothing serious to offer to the country to move it forward. People are talking about how the country should survive and others are trying to cause a setback in the name of June 12, which occurred 20 years ago. I think it should be forgotten so that we can make progress.

National Mirror

[Folami David]

Well let's just wait and see who'll eventually win when the whole election is over. May the best political party win! Nyc one.