YAR’ADUA: A PRESIDENT IN CHAINS. 

By Peter Claver Oparah. 

From all possible indications, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is in chains. He strives to repudiate the picture of a surrogate that he attracted for himself as the thick plot to foist him unraveled. But try as he can, he launches deeper into the credibility miasma he found himself as he elected to benefit from Obasanjo’s sleight of hands in April. He was deigned as a foil for the continuation of Obasanjo’s awful rule when the third term plot crashed. For his emergence, all institutions of state were treated to wholesome violation by Obasanjo and his hatchet men, either in the EFCC, the police, the SSS, the military, the presidency or in INEC. The shocking corruption and manipulation these various bodies visited on the body polity resulted in the sham charade that was passed as the 2007 elections, which questions our claim to decency, even as it served the nefarious intents and purposes of Obasanjo and his handmaidens. The dastardly manner Yar’Adua emerged has reified the contention that the departed civilian tyrant primed him as a feckless lackey he would use to extend his awful reign which Nigerians would forever wish to put behind them.  

The build up to the scrambled election was intended to ensure that whoever emerged from that charred process perpetually owed his commission to Obasanjo and his cronies and not to Nigerians. This was intended to buffet Obasanjo from the many acts of indiscretions that are now emerging to jangle any mind that still reserves any iota of sanity. As the former president, with his known penchant for crooked, corrupt and sly means settled for Yar’Adua, he made no pretences about his choice. He declared what should be a democratic election a do-or-die process and went ahead to introduce hair-raising impediments that would make it practically impossible for a free and fair election in April. He launched full blast into awkward manipulations and the wholesome corruption of the electoral process so as to ensure that none emerges without a debt of gratitude to pay him and this includes pretending the monumental loot he and his lackeys lifted from Nigeria in the past eight years never happened. He corralled the EFCC, the police, the SSS, his lick-spittle and sycophant-infested cabinet, the INEC and even a section of the print and electronic media to this battle that exerted tremendous impact on Nigerian electoral process and its credibility.  

As Yar’Adua emerged as his preferred choice, there was no intent to hide the skewed preference nor was there any intent to cover the scandalous process that sired the Yar’Adua presidency with any veneer of sanity as institutions of state were opened to tremendous corruptive influences just to ensure that the questions conform to the already provided answer, which is that Umar Yar’Adua must be the president of Nigeria. During the mockery and bland revelry that passed as the PDP presidential campaigns, (many newspapers quote this as proof of their shameless support for the electoral robbery of last April) Yar’Adua hug the quiet background and as the dirty shenanigans that tailspined to his emergence unfolded, he made no move to shell out and let Nigerians into the picture of what he would do with power. Even as they shuffled in a comic display of immature theatrics, Obasanjo and his cronies that were fighting a life battle to die with the many scruples they have raked for the last eight years, were merely playing for time and this fact was evident in the shameless manner they ridiculed the entire nation with what is unarguably the most fraudulent election in the history of mankind. During these open sesames that mock and haul invectives on decency, Yar’Adua was screened from the people he wanted to rule. Apart from the contrived and carefully managed picture of a prudent financial manager that was fangled to boost his image among a citizenry that has grown pathologically paranoid of lying public officials, there was nothing advanced for why the country must be crumbled to have Yar’Adua except for the need to retain the greed of PDP and their collaborators in all spheres of national life, including the media. What was passed as the Yar’Adua campaign sessions were annoying and nauseous celebration of the inanities and manifest shortcomings of the departed presidency; its many paradoxes and its bizarre limitations, often packaged in the most horrible adult effusions of plain debauchery. Yar’Adua was reduced to an acquiescing lackey, a soulless co-player in the orgy of perfidy that was passed as the 2007 elections. 

At best, Yar’Adua made the life commitment to his master and the man that exhumed him from a dour, anonymous rule in Katsina State and pledged, on his life, to continue the much-despised, scorched earth, petty, self-fending and cannibalistic rule of Obasanjo. These he couched under the mantra of continuing a vacuous reform that was originally intended to rob and dupe Nigerians. He made no fresh commitment and played deaf and dumb on the desirable need to fumigate the country from the stench and putrid ordour of Obasanjo’s hypocrisy, annoying duplicity and adult guile. He made no commitment of sacrificing the dubious interests of his master for the much persecuted interests of long-suffering Nigerians. In his unconvincing pledge to continue the ruinous reform of his master, Yar’Adua served sufficient notice that no end exits for the serial defrauding of Nigerians that reached its bestial heights when the dubious Obasanjo statecraft unfolded. It was not as if Yar’Adua never knew the heightened doubt with which Nigerians held Obasanjo as his woe-ridden tenure wound to an anti-climactic end. It was not as if the recluse from Kaduna that enjoyed the devious game that foisted him, never knew that Nigerians suffered their worst form of defenestration in the Obasanjo years. It was not as if he never knew the level of discontent with Obasanjo’s penchant to sow duplicity and plain con to shortchange Nigerians while growing a corrupt cabal of political and economic cultists from the blood of Nigerians. But he counted these far higher than the interests of the millions of Nigerians that have borne the brunt of callous and remorseless leadership for the greater parts of their independent history. This was the reason he was content pledging an undying love for the serial manipulator that was growing so unpopular that Nigerians deign him the very worst they have experienced since 1960. 

Shocked and awed by the force of the hefty brigandage that was employed to rig the 2007 elections, Nigerians latched unto the hope that Yar’Adua was intelligent enough to ensure that the country is redirected from the ruinous path Obasanjo deftly charted for the past eight years. Doing this would entail a prosecution of the cabal with whom Obasanjo plundered and rendered this country unworkable for the past eight years, even with an unflagging oil-boom. The trust of the people’s unfounded hope that Yar’Adua would be different from Obasanjo is that no sane leader would allow the licentiousness and brazenness with which the Obasanjo regime promoted corruption to endure-even when it was professing a hypocritical commitment to fighting corruption. There is no way any leader could fight corruption, post-Obasanjo, without stepping on the elephantine toes of the departed president whose life is a cocktail of contradictions and shocking paradoxes when it comes to corruption, patriotism and statecraft. This was the bulk of expectations Nigerians, beaten silly by a foxy and clearly dubious president and his cronies in April 2007, imposed on Yar’Adua, as he got ready to battle the huge welter of deficit his emergence imposed on him. This much was said by even those in the media and the professional politicians that were made parts of the elaborate and well-funded post-electoral crisis management approach that were put in place even before the sham elections to manage the obvious fallout of the conspiracy to impose a surrogate on Nigerians. 

Now, with Yar’Adua coveting a stolen mandate, he is playing well to the script of the power mongers and cultic ring that forcefully lorded him on Nigerians. He hides in a ghost-like smile that betrays a sickening lack of guts to be his own man. He allows the pharaoh that broke all the known rules in decency to foist him, a seamless field to play on and he is relishing the anonymous game as it unfurls. He has allowed the obtrusive evil farmer to foist his lackeys as leaders of the national assembly, he has retained the racketeers that spinned Obasanjo’s duplicitous policies to remain put in such prime corporations as the NNPC, the PPPRA, PHCN, etc. He has allowed his benefactor to continue profiteering from the wealth of the people he plundered with his cronies, even when sentiments bay for a reversal. He has made lame promises of electoral reforms but has allowed the shameless and unscrupulous hireling called Maurice Iwu to continue insulting us even when we don’t know why EFCC is so lethargic to move in and save what remains of the over N60 billion heist that happened in INEC, with mostly monies belonging to international donor agencies.  

What more, Yar’Adua was so shamelessly dragged by Obasanjo to a hotel room the other day to witness one of the latter’s crude coveting of power and Yar’Adua impishly played along like a sheep led to the slaughter that dared not open his mouth in so little as a whimper of protest! He has made a cultic oath to the wily president that his cabinet is open to the manipulative whims of the Otta farmer; to use as he pleases, in a move that would ultimately complete the full-blown realization of the third term by another devious means. What more, the country has just emerged from a needless session of fuel price manipulation, visited by the conscienceless avatar from Otta, that worsted the fate of the Nigerian people and which Yar’Adua was so spineless to revert.  

These and many more facts point to the fact that, for once in our country’s history, we are saddled with a marionette, a soulless, malleable and gutless pawn that was sponsored to give cover to the obnoxious policies of a thinly disguised matador that deigns nothing so sacred as to destroy in the process of realizing his selfish interests. Everything point to the fact that for the next four years, we are going to be saddled with a surrogate that lends himself to limitless manipulation by a man that is running from his recent pasts. We have on our hands a confirmed invalid that cannot assert himself in a clash with the primitive greed of his benefactor and the earlier we start making hays, the better for this well-famished nation. The recourse to a so-called unity government is just a step in the process of realizing the elephantine interests of Obasanjo who is hedging himself from questions of his awful stewardship and should be jettisoned. I believe the opposition should waste no further time in ensuring that this country does not continue servicing the gluttony of Obasanjo and the best way to do it and move the country forward is to fight an emerging third term scenario that sees Yar’Adua as a malleable rookie in Obasanjo’s malevolent hands. Nothing has changed from the past eight years. It is still same of the same, with a president on lease in charge. 
 

Peter Claver Oparah

Ikeja, Lagos. 

Robot  Villager

# 1 YAR’ADUA: A PRESIDENT IN CHAINS. ...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 03.07.2007 13:48

gwobezentashi  Villager

# 2 Yar’Adua opposes Obasanjo on National Assembly committees Chiawo Nwankwo, Abuja Strong indications emerged on Tuesday that President Umaru Yar’Adua and former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, are heading in opposite directions over the Peoples Democratic Party directive that all committees in the Senate and House of Representatives be chaired by PDP lawmakers. The PDP caucus in the House met behind closed doors after the plenary session. At the meeting, the Speaker, Mrs. Patricia Etteh, conveyed the party‘s decisions at the last National Executive Committee meeting and that of the Board of Trustees to the caucus. It was gathered that Obasanjo, who is the BOT Chairman insisted that all committees in the National Assembly should be chaired by PDP legislators. It was learnt that Yar’Adua stressed that since he would form a government of national unity, it was only reasonable to extend such arrangement to the National Assembly. The conflicting positions of Yar‘Adua and Obasanjo, a lawmaker from the North-West said, was responsible for Etteh‘s delay in announcing the chairmen of the 65 committees, which were announced on Tuesday. A source at the meeting said, ”Yar‘Adua believes in carrying the opposition along in the National Assembly but Obasanjo is opposed to it and the House leadership is confused, whether to listen to the president or the former president.” According to the source, more contentious was Obasanjo‘s position that lawmakers be paid only their salaries and not giving other allowances in bulk on the ground that they would be misused or not retired or accounted for as required by financial regulations. Obasanjo allegedly directed that lawmakers should apply for funds as demanded by exigencies, stressing that the lawmakers were getting too much money. The former president, the source further explained, stressed the need to correct the public impression that the legislators were in the chambers to feather their nests rather than improve the lots of Nigerians. The source said, “It was at this point that the session became rowdy because all the members opposed Obasanjo‘s position.” http://www.punchontheweb.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art200707043152546 CAN THE REAL PRESIDENT PLEASE STAND UP? Aluta! Gwobezentashi Posted by gwobezentashi| 04.07.2007 01:31

Afeni  Villager

# 3 Obasanjo is right on this issue. There should be no government of Natoinal Unity. And Law Makers should be made to make do with minimal salaries. On the issue of Government of National Unity, it is detrimental to democracies for political posts to be shared contrary to the wishes of the people. If the rigged elections must stand, then the ruling party should get to chair all seats in the NASS committee. As for the bonus that the Law-Makers are receiving, it is extremely irresponsible. Politics should not been seen as avenue for self-enrichment. If these men and women in NASS are out in search of wealth, let them go to the private sector. Let them leave their posts for those are genuinely interested in addressing the plight of the people. While on this subject, it is only fair to point-out the hypocrisy of Obasanjo. After conducting what was the worse elections in Nigeria's history, he should be the last person to advocate a winner-take-all policy. Posted by Afeni| 04.07.2007 01:42

Ochi Dabari  Villager

# 4 Peter, This is called Plan B of the Third term agenda. Baba is firmly in place. I have always said it; if there is anything I still "adore" in Obasanjo, it is that he understands Nigerians, far better than anyone alive today. IBB thought the same about understanding Nigerians but he was too lilly-livered, otherwise he would still be ruling today. And the fact is that Nigerian infrastructure would have been better for it, be it water, roads, education, power, etc. Unfortunately, we got a born-*******, a kleptomaniac, a fraudster, who fooled everyone into believing that he was the next best thing after air. Obasanjo knows that Nigerians will not rise against him. They are too malleable. Even if they do rise up now, it will be against the stooge that he has put in place. Yar'Adua will achieve nothing b/c he is not in power and will not be in power for as long as Obasanjo lives. I just want readers to be aware of this b4 they blame another clueless northerner for ruining Nigeria. We have had these southern hangerson, who ruin the economy, even when a northerner is assumed to be in power. There was another one when Shagari was said to be in power - Adisa Akinloye was so shameless that he celebrated being a billionnaire, from selling wind. Even at the time, Obasanjo's Otta farm blossomed, as Shagari chewed gworo from one city to the other. Now, it is worse that the same Obasanjo is the one really ruling and has been ruining Nigeria for more than 10 years out of 46. I don't know how the country is going to be rescued from this monster. ochi Posted by Ochi Dabari| 04.07.2007 02:53

Mikky jaga  Villager

# 5 Obasanjo will remain in power for as long as he wants and Yar adua will remain in position as the fall guy on whom all the blames for Nigeria's woes will be hurled. That is a small price to pay for being the custodian of a stolen presidency. Any attempt to dissent or make any gra gra, he will find out why he was given Nigeria's presidency on a platter. The little child that says his father's soup is not palatable will be told the story of why his mother was sent packing. Posted by Mikky jaga| 04.07.2007 05:35

Oghre  Villager

# 6 I have no doubt in my mind that Yar-Adua is inexperienced and ineffective after his coronation as president of Nigeria. According to Nigerians, all they want is a university degree holder president. Well, we have bloody well got one, at a ridiculous price! An illegitimate president means he not only does not have the mandate of the people but he will have to appease corrupt stakeholders who should be in jail so as to consolidate his positions, at the expense of Nigeria. As I read this, “FG moves to remove Ribadu as EFCC boss” One wonders what price/s Yar-Adua and Nigeria has to pay further, what gestures, corrupt and inept he needs to make, what sacrifices the nation has to go through so Yar-Adua can please corrupt aggrieved parties to keep his throne! What socio-economic progress, political positives and democratic gains (if there are any) we shall lose for this man to remain in government! Ladies and Gentlemen: we are now entering a dangerous stage in our history; we are now not only looking at illegitimate governments, their agents and their godfathers but we are looking at the mortgaging of the Nigerian state in order for a few individuals to get their ways. Yar-Adua, the educated president has removed one of the best ministers of Government in the history of this country, El-Rufai, and he is set to remove Ribadu, in return we will get ministers like Abubakar Rima, Tinubu and Obi. I say bring back Tafa Balogun and Fabian Osuji, in the spirit of Government of national Unity, while we are there let us make former governor Alams the central bank governor. This free for all government is another display of northern immaturity in the art of governance that cost us nearly 30 years of degradation I am going to get my hausa attires ready, this will be another long ride of the rankadede and dan Arewa (Son of Arewa) intelligentsia. Posted by Oghre| 04.07.2007 06:23

gwobezentashi  Villager

# 7 This free for all government is another display of northern immaturity in the art of governance that cost us nearly 30 years of degradation I am going to get my hausa attires ready, this will be another long ride of the rankadede and dan Arewa (Son of Arewa) intelligentsia. Here we go again!! Disjointed and incoherent parambulation at display. El rufai and Ribadu come from Mars and UMYA was rigged in by Obasanjo and Iwu from Katsina ko? Racist ignorant jagbajantis will always seek every opportunity to ply their nonsense and ingredient. Ewu rankadede! Aluta! Gwobezentashi Posted by gwobezentashi| 04.07.2007 07:41

Oghre  Villager

# 8 One cannot fathom the mentality of Nigerians sometimes; it is like some individuals are programmed for failure and live their lives to support decadence. We are looking at a president that was almost refused Visa to the G8 summit because of his illegitimacy ah, but people like that last writer thinks it is ok. He is currently receiving phone calls from emirs, ex presidents and former military generals on how to embark on his day to day affairs concerning governance. Is he really the president of Nigeria? Our new senate president may very well be arrested for tax evasion in some places where he holds dual citizenships, atop the fact that he is required to appear in London on a divorce case and for his bravado posture with some British airways staff not long ago. We have state governors and minister from the previous government who are earmark for reappointment in Yar-Adua’s government, waiting to be arrested overseas for various financial offences. And yes, this is another display of Hausa/Fulani incompetence in government! This government will serve nothing more than to bring us back to degradation Posted by Oghre| 04.07.2007 08:04

gwobezentashi  Villager

# 9 We are looking at a president that was almost refused Visa to the G8 summit because of his illegitimacy ah, but people like that last writer thinks it is ok. No he doesn't, and there is a mountain of record of Alhaji Gwobezentashi Janinjaka's point of view. And yes, this is another display of Hausa/Fulani incompetence in government! This is where you display your own lack of a childhood because you still haven't learnt to join the dots. According to you, 2+2=15. You need to go back to elementary school and learn how to make elementary deductions rather than allow your ethnic myopia becloud your synthesis. Grow up man child! This government will serve nothing more than to bring us back to degradation. Indeed! Just like the one before it who put it there which you seem to think was the best thing since sliced bread. Aluta! Gwobezentashi Posted by gwobezentashi| 04.07.2007 08:15

Son of the Delta  Villager

# 10 Why Ex-Govs Won’t Be Ministers President Umaru Yar’Adua’s list of Ministerial nominees is awaiting final vetting by former President Olusegun Obasanjo before it is submitted to the Senate on Tuesday. Sources in both the Villa and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) headquarters in Abuja confirmed at the weekend that Obasanjo’s insistence last week on the exclusion of former Governors sent Yar’Adua and his team back to basics. They said Yar’Adua had suggested four former Governors described as "independent minded" but Obasanjo is vehement in his opposition. "There are indications that the man is not satisfied with simply installing Yar’Adua as President, but as the new leader of the party, he wants to decide who works with Yar’Adua and who does not", one stated. "Yar’Adua wanted the four former Governors to strengthen his administration, but Obasanjo stood against it, because, apparently, he does not want people who are too independent-minded to hijack governance". Among the four former Governors were those "reluctant" in supporting tenure elongation canvassed for Obasanjo and a very close associate of Yar’Adua. None of the sources agreed to disclose the names of the former Governors. However, one confirmed that the proposed appointment of former Cross River Governor, Donald Duke, as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was discussed, but dropped because "Duke does not have that ruggedness to handle FCT politics; he is a gentleman. FCT management needs a rugged soul". Obasanjo also reportedly insisted on assessing all the nominees before the list is passed on to the Senate. Three former Ministers were nominated and accepted by him and the party: Nasir el-Rufai, Aliyu Modibbo, and Abba Ruma. Two other Ministers earlier included in the list were dropped at the initial screening stage; one of them was a full Minister and latter became Minister of State during the last cabinet restructuring. Modibbo, Assistant to Presidential Chief of Staff, Abdullahi Mohammed, is reportedly being groomed to take over from his boss after three months. Party sources claimed, however, that he is not yet "ripe enough" for such a strategic post, although he was the unofficial Chief of Staff to Yar’Adua after the election, and before the inauguration on May 29. Ruma is a confidante of Yar’Adua, having served under him in Katsina as Commissioner, and later as Secretary to the State Government. One of Obasanjo’s former aides who spoke in confidence stressed that "the delay in the submission of the list is caused by former boss who says all the choices must be cleared by him". But another PDP official, hand-picked by Obasanjo, who did not want to be named, explained in another light why the man is against the appointment of former Governors as Ministers. "I disagree with you that there is a delay in submitting the list of Ministerial nominees to the Senate. Yar’Adua is simply taking his time because there are so many conflicting interests. I can only say that none of the former Governors will make the list because we believe it would amount to administrative naivety on the part of the President to appoint his former colleagues as Ministers. "Yar’Adua is the leader of the party, and when I say ‘we’, I am talking about the party leadership. "Former Governors will create a leadership crisis for him because they would look at him as their contemporary and colleague and not as the President. It is also possible that they would help him with sound advice because they have held administrative positions for eight years. That is a mere probability. "The decision may not go down well with some, but that was the position adopted by the party on Thursday night. It could be changed later if superior arguments prevail, which I doubt". He said the "hawks" in the party opposed to Obasanjo’s influence are uncomfortable with the development and are demanding a free hand for Yar’Adua to choose who to work with. "Principally, Ibrahim Mantu (former Senate Deputy President) and Tony Anenih (PDP Board of Trustees Chairman) have expressed concern. They want Yar’Adua to assert himself in power by appointing his own team". Mantu stated last week that he would not comment publicly on the matter, at least for the next six months. He did not confirm or deny the report. What is known is that Andy Uba, who is Obasanjo’s protÈgÈ, was offered the opportunity to pick which ministry to head, after his sack as Anambra Governor by the Supreme Court. Two sources confirmed that he has been given "an open cheque". Both said Uba has a special place in Obasanjo’s heart, and that he was the first person offered the Vice Presidency, which he declined "for lack of strong home support". A PDP source, Uba’s personal friend, said the man may end up as the National Security Adviser, "but he would be more competent as Chief of Staff, the engine room of the Villa. I can tell you that he has an open cheque and there is no pretence about it. He is a master strategist when it comes to party politics. Yar’Adua knows this". Among those said to be on the Ministerial list are a national officer of the party from Abia, another from Cross River, an Afenifere and former Alliance for Democracy (AD) member from Ekiti, former National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) from Sokoto, former Head of Service from Delta, former Deputy Governor from Enugu, and a former PDP Governorship aspirant from Akwa Ibom. It was learnt that a former Commissioner from an opposition party in Lagos is being considered, and would be confirmed once his party endorses the proposed Government of National Unity (GNU). "This is one of the reasons the final list has been delayed". The Presidency source noted, however, that "the list may change in the next few days, depending on a lot of factors, including the acceptance of the GNU by major opposition parties and the disposition of the stakeholders in the PDP". He said opposition is mounting within the party over the inclusion of some members of the National Executive Council (NEC) on the list; particularly one who has served as Minister. "Anything can happen between today (Saturday) and Tuesday when the list is expected to go to the Senate". Who said third term have ended? For those that want to deceive themselve the Butcher of Aso Rock is still in power he changed the location of his office from Abuja to Otta. Posted by Son of the Delta| 04.07.2007 08:39

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