A Bolekaja Presidency (7)

A Bolekaja Presidency (7)
[i]By Reu...Read the full article.

[falcon]

Dear Dr Abati,
Nigerians can save Nigeria from these men. All we need do is vote them out and guard our votes.
Please let us not worry too much about Atiku’s expenses, our perception of the source of his money, starting from the first 10 million Naira he has does not allow people like us to worry about that.

[akuluouno]

Dear Dr Abati,

Thanks for another in your series of Bolekaja Presidency.
Nothing will happen if Atiku is disqualified or even jailed before the 07 elections. Nigeria has seen and witnessed worse treatments meted out against Nigerians greater than Atiku and yet the heavens did not give way.
So why the furore over Atiku. He is the VP and there is a sitting president who has more powers than him. It is the mark of a man to know his capability and reach while doing his political calculus or else he may fall into the same trap as the cat which looked into a mirror and saw a lion.
Like I said in another thread, MKO has gone, ditto, Shehu Ya rAdua to boot all under Khalifa and yet the heaven remained intact. Baba almost went and is alive today to mete it out to anyone who questions his authority. Nigeria may turn out to be the loser in view of the roforofo but it may be for the better if when all ends it becomes a portender or harbinger of good things to come.

[Anthony A Kila]

akuluouno,
Haba!
Always having fun. Ever witty Ever in the know.
I am watching you. I think I am just jealous

[Willy]

Mr. Abati,

Why did the Guardian fail to carry Okey Ndibe’s A Tale of Three Candidates? It looks that Emmanuel “Andy” Uba war chest really knows no bounds. It will be a shame that in your capacity as the chairman of The Guardian editorial board may undo the credibility of the flagship. Your publisher may want to tell us something on this, don’t forget the people’s power that forced MKO to apologize to Concord readers after Bishop Idahosa mobilized them against the newspaper, it can still be done.

Your not printing said article, the second time this year, not only denied many Nigerians the opportunity of the information, but raises the question of your personal credibility.

Thanks for your watery gruel of a Bolekaja Presidency, giving us pap when we asked for yam, we are watching all of you, and one more of your antics and you will hear more from me and many.

[akuluouno]

An appeal court sitting in Enugu orders the reinstatement of Peter Obi. Breaking News.

[Auspicious]

Ref. Willy:

Yes, why did the The Guardian fail to publish Mr. Ndibe's last article, 'A tale of Three Candidates'? It appears you know something that the rest of us don't know, going by the obvious insinuation you made when you said "it looks that Emmanuel 'Andy' Uba war chest really knows no bounds". So, Mr. Willy, what do you know?

You further prognosticated by asserting that Dr. Abati's tenure as Chairman of the Guardian's Editorial Board may shamefully "undo the credibility of (that) flagship", and that his "personal credibility" may be on the line - again, for specific reasons only known to you. What, for crying out loud, do you know?

Will you be so kind to reveal to us your audience, what you may know or not know about Dr. Reuben Abati's personal integrity? Are you telling us that the Emmanuel 'Andy' Uba war machine has invaded the hallowed chambers of the Guardian Editorial Board? You will do well to answer these questions and more and let our minds rest.

I believe you could have raised the issue you raised without sounding so bitter - so personal - in your little submission above. You seem to be issuing Mr. Abati a threat over mere suspicions(?) on your part. Or maybe not. But are you personally in touch with Mr. Ndibe? If yes, has he complained to you, Willy, that his articles are being denied by Mr. Abati? Could this be for some other reason - maybe Ndibe never submitted it for publishing in The Guardian?

It is my belief that the Editorial Board of the Guardian excercises some sort of 'democracy' in its decision-making process. I don't want to believe that Mr. Abati weilds some Obasanjo-like power over his fellow board members. Unless you can prove to us your audience otherwise - unless you can tell us we don't know, we might have to believe that your criticism/veiled threats is only informed by personal prejudice.

Mr. Abati has been more of an asset to The Guardian and will most likely continue to be so, for his style of writing and preference of topics to opine on, remains the same. Like others who have commented on his latest piece here so far, I find the piece just as interesting as the others. "A Bonlekaja Presidency (7)" - seven long, interesting and occassionally funny series on the feud between Mr. Presisdent and his Vice! All that talk of Yam and Pap just sounds like Bad-Belle yarns, o jare!

Auspicious.

[Dragon]

The harsh reality on ground is that a major and considerable proportion of the electorate is not bothered about the ongoing fight. People are more interested in battling the hunger and overcoming the stress associated with survival in Nigeria than to take note of the damage caused by these politicians and the abuse of constitutional processes. Even the lawyers fighting cases on behalf of the maligned are all running working for their daily bread. They are not bothered about who wins or who loses. This is where the EFCC and the presidency derive their encouragement from.

The only hope for restoring dignity to the Nigerian project lies within the National Assembly to wake up to its conscience, forget its greed and avarice for 'settlement' by the presidency, and boot these men out of office via an impeachment. This should not take any longer than 7days - and have the senate president preside over a truly free and fair election process. Other than this, there is likely to be no election coming... and the very National Assembly members who are tail-bearers of the presidency will all be severely eaten by the President they are dying to protect.

A word is enough for the wise.....

[Willy]

Auspicious,

Good questions, I believe gentlemen do not necessary have to dance naked even if they must dance at all.

For starters, Okey Ndibe is a paid columnist of The Guardian, that comes with responsibilities and privileges, so the aspect of submitting his work on time or not, or Abati’s democratic discretion on publishing same does not come up.

And to your other questions, yes, I know a few more things that I do not have to necessarily write here, I am offering Abati a decent leeway to retrace his steps, raising the stakes much higher will make it more difficult for him, and less productive.

I challenge Abati to refute that his refusal to publish said essay citing a comment on Akala & Fayose as unproven that may lead to The Guardian being sued is untrue.

I have my information from right inside because I am much closer to him than he realizes.

That he is also in touch with some urchins that are writing under the pseudonym of Andy Uba is also very well known to some of us that have taken personal interest in the Anambra debacle. I will name names and incidences if Abati continues in this path of infamy.

As a parting comment, I challenge Abati to claim he is not aware of the author of that thrash on leadership that was published under Andy Uba’s name.

A word is enough for the wise, clean up your act Abati.

[Iphey]

Originally Posted by Willy

Auspicious,

Good questions, I believe gentlemen do not necessary have to dance naked even if they must dance at all.

For starters, Okey Ndibe is a paid columnist of The Guardian, that comes with responsibilities and privileges, so the aspect of submitting his work on time or not, or Abati’s democratic discretion on publishing same does not come up.

And to your other questions, yes, I know a few more things that I do not have to necessarily write here, I am offering Abati a decent leeway to retrace his steps, raising the stakes much higher will make it more difficult for him, and less productive.

I challenge Abati to refute that his refusal to publish said essay citing a comment on Akala & Fayose as unproven that may lead to The Guardian being sued is untrue.
I have my information from right inside because I am much closer to him than he realizes.

That he is also in touch with some urchins that are writing under the pseudonym of Andy Uba is also very well known to some of us that have taken personal interest in the Anambra debacle. I will name names and incidences if Abati continues in this path of infamy.

As a parting comment, I challenge Abati to claim he is not aware of the author of that thrash on leadership that was published under Andy Uba’s name.

A word is enough for the wise, clean up your act Abati.

Willy my brother... all I can say at this stage is that in the end, the Nigerian Guardian is a business and not a charitable organization. They are there to break even at the end of their financial year. The Editorial board (of which Ruben is merely the chair) has the discretion on what to publish or not publish. If they decide that it is best to avoid a liability, via Ndibe's article like you suggest it might be wise for them to refrain from doing so. For some reason, I doubt that Ruben alone makes the decision of what to publish and what not to publish in the entire paper. He also has bosses at the Guardian and is also an employee of the Newspaper, so he answers to someone too. Furthermore, I am aware that there is a meeting of the members of the Editorial board which Ruben chairs every Thursday at Rutam House where major decision about news stories, editorials focus and framing of news are decided. It will not be the first time they are refusing to publish Ndibe's article. If publishing Ndibe's article will end up costing the business more harm than good, then it is a decision they will ultimately take for the benefit of the paper, the business, the staff and the company's finances. If Okey Ndibe does not like it, he can do two things: decide to seek another platform and write for another paper, or open up his own Newspaper house and publish what ever he wants. There are many people employed by the Guardian Newspaper and the company cannot be held ransom due to one columnist's article. Opening up the company to liability because of one individual makes little or no business sense to me either!

[Willy]

Originally Posted by Iphey

Willy my brother... all I can say at this stage is that in the end, the Nigerian Guardian is a business and not a charitable organization. They are there to break even at the end of their financial year. The Editorial board (of which Ruben is merely the chair) has the discretion on what to publish or not publish. If they decide that it is best to avoid a liability, via Ndibe's article like you suggest it might be wise for them to refrain from doing so. For some reason, I doubt that Ruben alone makes the decision of what to publish and what not to publish in the entire paper. He also has bosses at the Guardian and is also an employee of the Newspaper, so he answers to someone too. Furthermore, I am aware that there is a meeting of the members of the Editorial board which Ruben chairs every Thursday at Rutam House where major decision about news stories, editorials focus and framing of news are decided. It will not be the first time they are refusing to publish Ndibe's article. If publishing Ndibe's article will end up costing the business more harm than good, then it is a decision they will ultimately take for the benefit of the paper, the business, the staff and the company's finances. If Okey Ndibe does not like it, he can do two things: decide to seek another platform and write for another paper, or open up his own Newspaper house and publish what ever he wants. There are many people employed by the Guardian Newspaper and the company cannot be held ransom due to one columnist's article. Opening up the company to liability because of one individual makes little or no business sense to me either!

Iphey,

Those go without saying, but can you point out the possible legal liability in the article as it is still available on this site?

Abati is hiding behind his fingers to call a spade a spade.

The Guardian has become a national institution beyond the business considerations of the Ibrus. Many Nigerians showed sympathy and demonstrated in university campuses when Abacha clamped on them.

Abati decides on what gets published in the Op-Ed page because many of those essays come in a day or two on the average, and in some cases hours before deadline.

I am still waiting for Abati to claim he does not know the writer with the pen name Andy Uba.

[Auspicious]

Hi, Willy!

Thanks for your response. True yarns, gentlemen cannot afford to dance naked otherwise the ladies will be fainting.

I insist that you could have raised the issue of Mr. Ndibe's missing article (from last Wednesday's edition of The Guardian Op-Ed column) in a less cantekerous manner - in a more civil manner. Imagine if I responded to you in the same manner you communicated your feelings about Dr. Abati, would we still have the benefit of this civil exchange? I doubt it.

Your prejudice overtook the substance of your initial comment on Dr. Abati with regards Dr. Ndibe's missing essay. It was more personal - if not petty - in content than issues-based. Or what is the need for "pap, yam or watery gruel" when even you know that Abati is no amateur editorial columnist but one of Nigeria's most reputable and finest? And why insinuate or mention what you cannot or are not willing to prove?

Regarding the allegation of his (Abati's) refusal to publish the essay over a comment on Akala and Fayose, one can also argue in defense of his position that it is better to be safe than sorry. I have read commentators here on NVS excoriating Mr. Ndibe for what they might call his aggressiveness or non-conformism. Unfortunately, the Guardian has this strong reputation for showing professional neutrality in disseminating information and Mr. Abati may just have protecting that reputation.

But who am I to defend The Guardian or Abati over some yet-to-be-proven allegations? Anybody can come here and make claims about what is or what's not. Hence the reason why I, like any other cautious person out there, will take everything that comes my way with a grain of salt. I am not saying what you have alleged is true or false but I know it is easy to destroy someone's name and reputation than to build it. I know for a fact, from reading you on this medium for about a year now that you are not a big fan of Abati.

Your challenge to Abati to claim he is unaware of the young brains behind 'Andy' Uba's phoney article about Leadership and Service cannot be of much consequence. What if he knows them? Does that mean he works with them? Does that mean he approves of them?Willy, I must say, your allegations reek more of deep-seated prejudice than anything else. It is more of 'dem say dem say' - rumors, in other words.

I am also challenging you to expose Abati for the biased, shady character that he is - if at all he is one. Better that than all these suppositions, insinuations and innuendos that you seem to be engaging in. If Mr. Abati truly is as biased and shady as you are alleging he is, he does not deserve to be shielded for whatever reason. It is either you drop the jist here hot and sizzling or hold your peace, Willy.

Auspicious.

[MrOneNaija]

A PIT FOR THE MONSTER AT ASO ROCK

As I did mention elsewhere, the person to be held responsible for this show of shame at that one-man vaudevillian bazaar erroneously referred to today as the Nigerian presidency is none other than the African Caligula called Obasanjo. The escalation in the atrocities and illegalities being perpetrated by this depraved monster is an indication of his desperation and panic ahead of May 29, 2007. The point has to be reiterated that there is nothing Obasanjo and his mafia will do that will prevent the sinister clown from leaving Abuja on May 29, 2007. That much had been settled a long time ago. And there will be consequences for the heinous crimes this kleptocrat and his fellow bacchants have committed against Nigeria and the Nigerian people.

This timely warning to the monster called Obasanjo and his henchmen:

A Word for Obasanjo (Daily Trust editorial)

Daily Trust
Abuja
January 31, 2007

If there is one accolade President Olusegun Obasanjo earnestly desires, it is for him to be acknowledged as a Nigerian statesman and father of modern Nigeria. A leader who craves this lofty recognition from his compatriots is expected to epitomize such virtues as even-temperedness and even-handedness in his dealings with people.
He is also required to show much evidence of such other noble values as accommodation, broad-mindedness, wisdom, moderation and tact. He must show he is a generous-spirited person who is forgiving and not vengeance seeking. Above all, he is expected to be a convinced patriot who loves his country and her people so passionately that he would loathe doing or saying anything that would threaten the stability of the polity and the well-being of his compatriots.
Such a one should not be seen acting like a rampaging bull in a china shop who would not hesitate to pull down anything, everything and anybody that looks like an obstacle on his way.
Unfortunately, President Obasanjo has shown much evidence of his lack of many of these attributes of statesmanship. In no better way has he expressed this shortcoming than in his rather unprincipled, pointless and petty fight against his deputy Atiku Abubakar. Atiku’s real crime was his legitimate ambition to have expressed a desire to contest against his boss in the 2003 election. To Obasanjo, this was an act of disloyalty for which Atiku must pay dearly.
Since 2003, much of what the President has preoccupied himself with is to hatch one conspiracy or another against the Vice-President. Every step taken has been calculated to humiliate, harass, undermine or discredit Atiku.
Obasanjo launched media propaganda warfare against Atiku with allegations of corruption in the running of the Petroleum Training Development Fund (PTDF). Atiku has won the media war. The President has waged series of legal battles against his subordinate. The Vice President has triumphed in every lawsuit initiated against him.
The President engineered the suspension of his number two from the PDP to deny him the chance to contest for the top job. The Vice-President outstrategised the retired General by having a fall back party, the Action Congress, whose presidential candidate he is today.
Obviously frustrated and incensed the more by Atiku’s serial triumphs over him, the President rail-roaded the Central Working Committee of the PDP to give him the “powers” to declare the Vice- President’s seat “vacant” because Atiku has crossed over to another party. He took the clearly unconstitutional act and had to reverse himself later obviously, because he realized that this would give Atiku another excellent opportunity to triumph over him at the law court.
The General, who ought to know better, seems consumed by the misguided feeling that as a soldier, he must win every battle, and at all costs. Apparently unconcerned about the implications of this ungentlemanly fight with Atiku on the polity, the President has given no indication yet that he will ever let go. Rather, he seems to have vowed to fight Atiku to a finish.
The other day, the President told some visiting foreign journalists in a rather unpresidential and unstatesmanly manner, that he is fighting his deputy because he is a terribly corrupt man. This claim does not wash with many Nigerians who believe that he himself has some questions to answer on corruption following Atiku’s very damaging counter allegations against him.
We wish to let the President know that Nigerians are simply tired of this childish, petty-minded and thoroughly unprincipled fight between him and his deputy. It is disgraceful that the two men part whose brief is to mediate in quarrels among the people they are leading are themselves involved in unceasing quarrel. Who then will reconcile them?
President Obasanjo once said that they the Owus of Abeokuta are a stubborn lot who never forget an injury. It is easy to see why he is unrelenting not only in his pursuit of Atiku but also in his several fights against those who have offended him.
We cannot deny the President his Owuness. As the Balogun (Prime Minister) of the Owu Kingdom, he may choose to exemplify the virtues and vices of his people. But he should do well to remember that by the grace of God he is today the president of Nigeria. What Nigerians expect from him is to take from his Owu roots ennobling traits and seek to integrate them with noble values from other Nigerian cultural roots to build our core national character traits. We do not expect that the President would take what is unedifying in his Owu people and seek to impose them as a national character.
The infamous Obasanjo-Atiku feud has done much to demean or diminish the high offices of President and Vice-President. Let an end be put to it. We are not in any way holding brief for Atiku Abubakar because it takes two to tango. But we blame the President more because he initiated it and because he, more than anybody else has the responsibility to ensure that he avoids anything that will unnecessarily heat the polity.
If the President would not let go and let Atiku be, he may do well to heed the Chinese proverb which says that any one who is pursuing vengeance should dig two pits!

[Willy]

Auspicious,

Yes, I agree that my approach could have been different, but let's get over the mode of delivery to focus on the substance, maybe it was the impotent anger of knowing he had achieved whatever he set out to in spite of what anyone may say.

I have reposted Okey Ndibe's article below, I want you and/or the lawyers in this forum to point out the legal infraction in it.

By the way, I meant to have referred to Agagu and not Fayose.

I will not get into the nuts-and-bolt of your position, that I am no Abati's fan is not news, neither am I alone in that regards and for good reasons also, I have raised issues over his careless comments which are not news to many readers.

That many voters in the country are reached more by print media than the internet is obvious, and that Abati denied these Nigerians the reinforcement of the evil Andy Uba & his co-travelers represent is regretable.

That I know Abati claimed legal reasons for not publishing said essay seems lost on you.

Keep believing what you may, most are not hoodwinked





A tale of three candidates


By Okey Ndibe

Many Nigerians shake their heads in bafflement each time President Olusegun Obasanjo points a finger to accuse a foe of graft. They seem to see a president pointing his other four fingers at himself.


Even so, a president deficient in irony and ethically handicapped seems blissfully unaware of the pathetic figure he cuts. Two weeks ago, while welcoming some visiting American reporters, Obasanjo engaged in his accustomed revisionism by ascribing his feud with Vice President Atiku Abubakar as a concomitance of his stance against corruption. Obasanjo also told the reporters that erstwhile Senate President Adolphus Wabara was netted by the anti-graft crusade. Wabara, hardly notorious for being trenchant, issued a public response that pulled no punches. He reminded the sanctimonious president that he had yet to satisfactorily respond to Atiku’s accusation of widespread presidential embezzlement.


Did Wabara’s temerity teach the president to spare decent people his hypocritical sermons on corruption? Absolutely not! Like the proverbial Eze Onyeagwanam (King I-don’t-want-to-be-told), this president has become adept at dancing naked. Unaware of his political toxicity, he has been leading the rendezvous of PDP candidates across the nation. At each stop, he opens his mouth and lets slip a sentiment so inane as to beggar credulity. If he had honest advisers, they’d have told him it’s time to disappear from the limelight. It’s time to cease reminding Nigerians how he has wasted eight odd years of their national life.


Not this man. Cursed with an inflated sense of his popularity, he insists on mounting the podium to lead the ritual of handing flags to candidates. In Akure, he displayed his usual facility for voicing a thought before it’s had time to be seasoned. Thrusting a finger in the direction of Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, the president, according to the Vanguard of Sunday, February 4, proclaimed: “Ex-minister Mimiko is corrupt”. This piece of verbal recklessness was irresponsibly broadcast at a rally. Where was Obasanjo’s proof? None at all. As the Vanguard reported, Obasanjo “said that the former Housing and Urban Planning minister, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, would soon be investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for corrupt practice.” A man is yet to be investigated, but the god of Aso Rock found fit to publicly defame him.


And the irony was this: the president spoke while holding up the hands of current state governor and PDP gubernatorial candidate, Mr. Olusegun Agagu, a man who may really be in legal trouble. A few days ago, www.saharareporters.com revealed that Agagu “was indicted by a judicial panel of inquiry headed by Justice Obiora Nwazota for fraud and embezzlement totaling 3.6 million dollars.” What’s more intriguing, the online reporter disclosed that Obasanjo’s government had adopted a White Paper requiring Agagu to “refund the sum of $3.2 to the national treasury.” But it doesn’t matter, for Obasanjo is nothing less than a god, able to dispense perdition and absolution to whomsoever he pleases. By the strange algebra of Obasanjo’s sense of crime, a man is corrupt only, and only if, having dipped his hand in the public till, he doesn’t pledge eternal loyalty to the president. If you’re a thief, but the president’s pal, then you are assured that EFCC hounds won’t be sent in your direction. And even when anti-corruption agents peer into your affairs and write a report reeking of plunder, you can count on the president to tuck the document underneath some rug.


Which brings us to Oyo state where Mr. Alao Akala, the PDP’s governorship candidate, is alleged to be embroiled in scandals of his own. According to saharareporters, the EFCC’s searchlight on Akala allegedly uncovered some fraud related to rice importation as well as inflated invoices in a book publishing deal. Two weeks ago, Nuhu Ribadu, the head of the EFCC, spoke in Ibadan and expressed disgust that the likes of Akala were permitted to run, and ruin, Oyo state. Such unflattering barbs mean little to Akala, for he is a favorite of the deity who defines and redefines corruption.


The third candidate who is beloved of the president is Nnamdi “Andy” Uba, the PDP’s improbable choice for the governorship seat in Anambra state. Speaking in Enugu, at Uba’s investiture, Obasanjo turned to melodrama. Turning to Uba, the president said: “Standing by me here is my son from an Igbo woman (Chief Andy Uba) who wakes me up and watches me till I sleep.” One’s immediate reaction was to say to Obasanjo: “Take your son and run! Run away, you and your misbegotten progeny!”


Uba, whose shtick is to project himself as a diligent disciple who has benefited from a seven-year apprenticeship in what he told a reporter was the “Obasanjo School,” is fast becoming a political masquerade. Like his mentor, Uba is transforming himself into a practitioner of the art of self-reinvention. He is gifted at saying what he cannot possibly mean, and acting in a way that is totally at odds with the image he now fervently professes.


Uba is, in short, a scam-in-progress. He is spending a dizzying amount of money to curry affection as well as to confound, if not confuse, the public record. In him we find a candidate who may be not just strange to most Nigerians but may well be unknowable.


There is no question that Uba has a lot of money. Four years ago, he ferried close to $200,000 in cash on a presidential jet bound for New York. His failure to declare the cash landed him in serious legal trouble, one he paid a fine of $26,000 to escape. I’m informed that he has made the round of traditional rulers in Anambra, doling out cars and cash with careless abandon. His campaign has also become, I’m told, the largest employer of young people in Anambra outside of the state government. His political foot soldiers, by one account, are quartered in several hotels in Awka, and enjoy inexhaustible expense accounts. A couple of weeks ago, he announced that he was going to personally give fuel subsidies to motorists in Anambra. The headline in one newspaper read: “Uba subsidizes fuel prices in Anambra”. Another newspaper caption, “Andy Uba Splashes N500m On Sports Fiesta”, captured the spirit of the man’s money-driven politics.


What’s troubling is that neither Uba nor Obasanjo has explained the source of the candidate’s stupendous wealth. Public records in the United States, where Uba lived before being hired eight years ago by the president, paint the picture of a man who was struggling to pay his bills. He was, at any rate, far from a wealthy man in the U.S. Is Uba prepared to come clean on the source of his money? Did his fortune come at the cost of the collective misfortune of Nigerians?


Uba’s larger handicap is that he has yet to establish his bona fides. For several years, the public took him for a physiotherapist or, at any rate, a man with an earned doctorate. But when the tenacious duo of Sowore Omoyele and Ikenna Ellis-Ezenekwe dug into his record, they uncovered disturbing skeletons. None of Uba’s post-secondary certificates could be verified. Far from holding a doctorate, the reporters found out that the man doesn’t even hold a first degree. Not that a degree is a requirement for a man coveting the governor’s seat. But a man who cloaks himself in borrowed academic garbs, and then sustains the façade of legitimacy for close to eight years, strikes me as unworthy of being elected governor. Uba seems content to hide the mask created by his propaganda machine, but even the best propaganda unravels in the end.


For many Anambrarians, Uba’s political biography is his undoing. Many in Anambra hold Uba, his brother Chris, and Obasanjo responsible for the mayhem inflicted on the state since 2003 and even before. The tempestuous Chris Uba has been pilloried for orchestrating the abduction of former Governor Chris Ngige and also for organizing the hoodlums who in 2004 carried out a three-day burning spree of public property. Yet, many suspect that Chris could not have dared if his elder brother, Nnamdi (nicknamed Andy by the president), and the presidency had not lent their muscle and weight. Therein lies Uba’s peril, the futility of his quest to govern a state he helped make ungovernable. Like Obasanjo, Uba is widely despised in Anambra. His generous dole outs may buy him deceptive adulation, but winning an election remains a stretch.

[tonsoyo]

Originally Posted by Willy

Iphey,

Those go without saying, but can you point out the possible legal liability in the article as it is still available on this site?

Abati is hiding behind his fingers to call a spade a spade.

The Guardian has become a national institution beyond the business considerations of the Ibrus. Many Nigerians showed sympathy and demonstrated in university campuses when Abacha clamped on them.

Abati decides on what gets published in the Op-Ed page because many of those essays come in a day or two on the average, and in some cases hours before deadline.

I am still waiting for Abati to claim he does not know the writer with the pen name Andy Uba.

Willy,

You just don't seem to get it, as your argument is tailored towards what you feel The Guardian should do, and not what The Guardian, a professional business with its own policy, with an Editorial Board headed by a seasoned Journalist and a Lawyer of Abati's calibre want to do. The truth is that you and your friends cannot decide for The Guardian what to publish.

If you and your friend are dissatisfied with their decision, float your own Newspaper. boycott Guardian or simply keep quiet.

Your accusations doesn't make sense because it is not all 'good' article or at least what you Willy considered 'good' would be published.

Even if Abati is the only one that decides what and what get published, so be it. Tell your friend Ndibe to wait for his own time!

[tonsoyo]

Willy,

Let me ask you a question, if you were to be an Editor will you approve Okey Ndibe's article posted by you above for publication?
If your answer is yes then I know why you will never be an Editor, and if you mistakenly become one, please do not give up your day job.

First of all, Abati and the Guardian have a pattern of trying as much as possible to maintain neutrality, secondly they try not to give comfort to one party in a dispute by balancing the facts. Not only that Ndibe used a lot of foul language against the person of the President in this article, he also appeared to be holding brief for the President opponents.

This article is only good for internet sites like this, tabloids or some second rated newspaper, but if a Newspaper house of The Guardian calibre publishes this kind of article, they may get sued or at least be accused of holding brief for the President's opponent.

Some other Newspapers may get away with though, but not The Guardian, because the credibility of the medium do matter a lot.

Can you imagine a Guardian columnist quoting Saharareporters? and you expect The Guardian to publish a material using Saharareporter has point of reference? when we all know the stand of this outfit against this administration. It will clearly paint The Guardian as biased.

[denker]

hi folks:

this fight is not our fight oooo...na okey and the guardians ooooo....abeg mak we leave mather..if okey no say anything to us...why we dey fight his fight...nawa!

[Auspicious]

Hi again, Willy!

I made the point of your mode of delivery and moved on already, as you can see from the 3rd, down to the last paragraph of my last comments.

I read the Ndibe article over 24 hours ago and my comments are there for all to see. And even while I don't see the importance of reposting it here again, I can confidently tell you that I appreciate the content of that article like most of the people who were privileged to read it. Like I do with Abati's essays, I always look forward to Nidbe's beatifully-written essays.

But truth be told, while one of the duo usually comments on a wide array of topics from funny, to casual, to mundane and to the controversial, the other, for the most part, focuses on the negatives in our society. But guess what? I don't mind. I still love to read Okey Ndibe any day, any time. His last piece was not only a good read, but an important one.

But, as Iphey pointed out, it behooves the Board of Editors at the Guardian Newspapers to do that which needs to be done in the interest of that private business enterprise and its employees, of which Mr. Reuben Abati is just e plurubus unum - one out of many. One cannot therefore blame The Guardian or accuse Mr. Reuben Abati as an individual, for not publishing Mr. Ndibe's last article.

There is nothing you said that was lost on me, Willy. I have simply noticed that you have repeatedly and conveniently ignored the fact that Abati is NOT the sole decision-maker at Rutam House. I wonder why. Or do you want to tell your audience here and now, again, that you know something about Mr. Reuben Abati's dictatorship amongst his fellow members of the Editorial Board at The Guardian's stables?

Thank God we are not all "hoodwinked" by our prejudice.

PS: Folks, can we move on to the content of Abati's piece now and fashi Guardian's Ogun Idile (Family Tussle) for The Guardian?

Auspicious.

[Free Publius]

Willy,

You invited Villagers to comment on Guardian's exposure had they published Mr. Ndibe's artice, so here goes:

Unless you can independently verify saharareports sources and the veracity of their stories, or, in the alternative, be prepared to tie yourself to their exposure aversion level, you would be well advised to stay away from publishing this article. See, when the pigeon and the hen are playing in the yard, the hen should realize that should wahala come, the pigeon has the benefit of vertical escape while the hen remains grounded. Guardian has a lot more to lose than saharareports.

Guardian may very well have made the prudent decision that they do not share similar exposure appetite as do saharareports and rightly decided not to publish the article. This is eminently reasonable.

On the non-legal considerations, Mr. Ndibe's tone was probably a bit too strident and one-sided. Guardian may have very well decided not to have such style in their paper? That's their prerogative, understandably.

The real question is actually for Mr. Ndibe. If he felt so strongly about what he wanted to say about the Ubas, why didnt he commit to more stringent intellectual diligence and not rely so extensively on saharareports?

Personally, I like reading saharareport though I belive they can spin a yarn or two. And if my livelihood depended on it, I would shy away from tying myself to their apron so tightly.

Free Publius

[MrOneNaija]

MUZZLING DISSENT?

Originally Posted by tonsoyo

Willy,

Let me ask you a question, if you were to be an Editor will you approve Okey Ndibe's article posted by you above for publication?
If your answer is yes then I know why you will never be an Editor, and if you mistakenly become one, please do not give up your day job.

First of all, Abati and the Guardian have a pattern of trying as much as possible to maintain neutrality, secondly they try not to give comfort to one party in a dispute by balancing the facts. Not only that Ndibe used a lot of foul language against the person of the President in this article, he also appeared to be holding brief for the President opponents.

This article is only good for internet sites like this, tabloids or some second rated newspaper, but if a Newspaper house of The Guardian calibre publishes this kind of article, they may get sued or at least be accused of holding brief for the President's opponent.

Some other Newspapers may get away with though, but not The Guardian, because the credibility of the medium do matter a lot.

Can you imagine a Guardian columnist quoting Saharareporters? and you expect The Guardian to publish a material using Saharareporter has point of reference? when we all know the stand of this outfit against this administration. It will clearly paint The Guardian as biased.

What a skewed way of looking at a segment of the Nigerian press and its coverage of political events! Listen, those pretending that Willy does not have a valid point by raising the pertinent question of why Okeh Ndibe's latest article is yet to be published in The Guardian are only being hypocritical. It would hardly surprise me if it turns out that the article in question was indeed denied publication.

Nigeria is in an election year and the sleazy Obasanjo-initiated show of shame involving the tyrant and the Vice-President has a lot to do with the desperation for self-perpetuation on the part of the Aso Rock tin god and his confederates in the likes of 'Andy' Ubah and the Ekiti governor. By refusing to air the opinion of an eloquent non-conformist voice, what the people at The Guardian are invariably saying is that they would rather a stand indicting the positions of 'Andy' Ubah and co. were not heard at this critical juncture in our collective history. Abati offers a narrative of the fight between Obasanjo and the rest of the country that is both entertaining and enlightening. Yet, his is only but a version. Okeh Ndibe brings to bear a perspective that to a large extent complements the representation by the likes of Abati. That is one reason why any attempt at muzzling him should be deemed as a retrogressive proposition.

We are reminded that Abati is not exactly neutral when it comes to the troubled relationship between Obasanjo and V-P Atiku. Remember the virulently anti-Atiku commentaries the chairman of The Guardian's editorial board wrote in support of Obasanjo when he, Abati, assumed that somehow the v-p was behind the effort at the National Assembly to deservedly impeach Obasanjo? That was in 2003. Has Abati's attitude to Atiku changed since then? Me thinketh not! The point being made here is that The Guardian cannot hide behind commercial and other excuses in order to silence a worldview that for whatever reason it does not agree with and expect that readers would take kindly to that.

My advice to Mr. Ndibe is that if he is a victim of a gag order, he should ignore it. He owes it to his readers and the rest of the country to relentlessly pursue his principled demystification of those selfish characters hell bent on continuing with their depravity and revelry at the expense of the average Nigerian.

And, by the way, have you people noticed that Abati who has a keen eye for detail regarding the Nigerian polity has curiously not thought it fit to comment one of the major scandals of the bumbling Obasanjo kleptocracy, namely, the scandal of money smuggling on a presidential plane involving "Andy" Ubah and Obasanjo Farms?