President
Goodluck Jonathan hits back at General Muhammadu Buhari over his statement
today, titled “Pull Nigeria Back From the Brink”, which contains allegations
leveled against the Jonathan led administration on a brutal crackdown of
the opposition party .
DON’T BLAME ME FOR YOUR PARTY’S
SELF-INFLICTED WOES – PRESIDENT JONATHAN TELLS BUHARI
We have noted with much surprise and regret, the statement
issued by General Muhammadu Buhari today in which he made some wild and totally
unsustainable allegations against President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.
Although he tries very hard to deny it in the statement titled
“Pull Nigeria Back From the Brink”, there can be no doubt that General Buhari
has sadly moved away from the patriotic and statesmanlike position he recently
adopted on national security, which President Jonathan publicly commended, and
has now reverted to unbridled political partisanship.
There can be no other explanation or justification for the
completely unwarranted and very uncharitable assault on the conduct and
integrity of President Jonathan which the statement he issued today represents.
General Buhari’s main grouse which clearly motivated his
ill-considered statement appears to be what he called “the gale of impeachments
or the utilisation of desperate tactics to suffocate the opposition and turn
Nigeria into a one-party state”.
It is most unfortunate that instead of working to put their house
in order and resolve the leadership crises and internal contradictions that
have plunged their party into a downward spiral, General Buhari and his
opposition allies have resorted to blaming a blameless President for their
woes.
The processes for impeaching an elected Governor are clearly
stipulated in the National Constitution which Nigeria has operated since 1999.
The President of Nigeria is not assigned any role in that process and President
Jonathan has certainly not played any role in the recent impeachment of
Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa or in the impeachment drama currently being
played out in Nasarawa State.
For the record, President remains fully committed to upholding
the letters, principles and spirit of the Nigerian Constitution as he has
sworn, and defending the rule of law and integrity of the democratic process
with all his might.
General Buhari talks about anarchy. He needs to be reminded that
President Jonathan from his humble beginnings as a Deputy Governor in Bayelsa
state to date, has never in his acts, or utterances, recommended or promoted
violence as a tool of political negotiation.
Contrary to whatever General Buhari and his new friends may
imagine, President Jonathan fully respects the rights, powers, authority and
independence of elected representatives of the people, including the members of
the state assemblies who have concluded or initiated impeachment proceedings
against their state governors on grounds which they consider justifiable.
The constitution does not give the President any power to
intervene in such proceedings and President Jonathan has never arrogated
such powers to himself or sought to exert any nefarious and
unconstitutional influence on state assemblies in Adamawa, Nasarawa or anywhere
else in other to secure undue political advantage for his party as General
Buhari unjustifiably alleges.
President Jonathan remains true to his declaration that no
political ambition of his is worth the life of a single Nigerian. The President
has definitely not declared war on his own country or deployed federal
institutions in the service of partisan interests as General Buhari falsely
claims. Neither has he been using the common wealth to subvert the system and
punish the opposition, as the former Head of State inexcusably asserts.
Also, President Jonathan has never at any time ordered that any
Nigerian should be kidnapped or that anyone should be crated and forcefully
transported in violation of decent norms of governance.
We therefore urge General Buhari to tarry a while, ponder over
his own antecedents and do a reality check as to whether he has the moral right
to be so carelessly sanctimonious.
It may well be time to pull the brakes, as General Buhari says
in his statement, but it is he and others who have resorted to idle
scapegoating and blaming President Jonathan for their self-inflected political
troubles who need to stop their inexcusable partisanship and show greater
regard for the truth, democracy, constitutionalism, the rule of law, peace,
security and the well-being of the nation.
Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
July 21, 2014
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