2015
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION; WHO
IS THE BEST MAN FOR THE JOB? PART 1.
May 29, 1999 was a day many
Nigerians in their late 20’s and upwards will never forget in a hurry. It
marked the transition from the military regime to the much desired civilian
era. Prior to that time, Nigerians [most of us] were in a state of agony,
feeding from hand-to-mouth. To be factual, hunger was the order of the day,
insecurity and scarcity of every good thing were not far-fetched.
Some called it fate, others called
it, the Act Of God, whatever it is, I know that there was an intervention and
it led to the 4th Republic. The expectations were high even in the midst of the
encomiums. The baton was given to Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo, who spent 8years as
the President of Nigeria, he did a lot of “good” things. However one thing that
he did that will never depart from the memory of Nigerians is that he attempted
to stretch his tenure to 12years [his 3rd term bid], but intervention came
again and his ambition was cut short.
The baton was then passed to Mr.
Umaru Musa Yar’adua. Some believed that if not for his ill-health and eventual
death, he would have been the best Civilian ruler that Nigeria had ever had.
Mr. Yar’adua is still the only president in the history of Nigeria to ever have
brought down the price of PMS [petrol]. Obasanjo left it at #70 per litre but
he reduced it to #65 per litre. He also reduce the price of kerosene to #50 per
litre. He really touched the lives of the masses. Let us all remember that he
came up with the Amnesty deal that terminated the uprising by the militant in
the Niger-Delta region of the nation
The baton fell from him onto the
laps of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, a man that most Nigerians call the
“Clueless One”, whom have been in power for over 5years as the President of
Nigeria and is attempting to come back for another round of 4 years.
15 years after the transition [from
Military to Civilian era], the hopes, dreams and expectations that most Nigerians
had with respect to democracy hasn’t materialized. The roads are still very
bad, good drinkable water is still a little scarce and not it’s not free, and
corruption is still on the rise. To make matters worse, terrorism was birthed
during this democratic era [ and gained better ground during Jonathan’s era],
the popular terrorist seat, Boko-Haram, breaking their old records on a daily
basis, wreaking havoc beyond comprehension, destroying lives and properties in
ways and manners that using the adjective, barbaric to qualify them, will be an
understatement of the highest order.
Back to the matter, though the
Presidential battle is fiercely and obviously between PDP & APC, however,
we never can tell, one of the minor parties could spring up surprises.
The following are the TITANS,
trying [to clinch the PDP President] ticket;
1. President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan; the
following are his strengths and weaknesses.
HIS STRENGTHS.
i.
He belongs to the ruling party and the self-acclaimed
title of “the biggest party in Africa” and this party have never lost the
President Election since 1999.
ii.
Facilitated the process that led to fighting to a
standstill of the highly contagious Ebola outbreak in record time.
iii.
Under his regime, there has been an “improvement in
the Agricultural sector”.
iv.
Also, perceivable improvement in the information,
communication and technology industry.
HIS WEAKNESSES.
i.
Corruption is thrived in his regime, e.g.
a. $20Billion disappeared in the nations excess
crude-oil account.
b. Undeclared
monies flow in private jets to South Africa, to purchase weapons to be used for
“unknown reasons” and the list is almost endless.
c. The rising
trend of insecurity in the country caused by Boko-Haram.
2. I wish I
could tell you that there is another [prominent] person coming out against our
dear President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, however, I can’t because… there isn’t.
However, the following are the GLADIATORS that are working assiduously to snatch the APC President
tickets;
1. RABIU KWANKWASO; the following are his
strengths and weaknesses.
HIS STRENGTHS.
i.
He is “experienced” having been Deputy Speaker of the
house, Ministration of Defense and Governor of Kano State.
ii.
Has a fair Northern support and this support is coming
majorly from Kano-State, the allegedly most populated state of Nigeria.
iii.
He is relatively young.
HIS WEAKNESSES.
i.
Not popular among non-elite and Southern part of
Nigeria.
ii.
Perceived as largely regional.
2. AMINU TAMBUWA; the following are his strengths and weaknesses.
HIS STRENGTHS.
i.
Possess youthful dexterity.
ii.
Has a large support base in the house with several
Federal lawmakers.
iii.
He is scandal free and have no tolerance for
corruption.
HIS WEAKNESSES.
i.
Perceived by many as immature for the job.
ii.
He is also perceived by some as an unstable politician
who plays politics of convenience by cross-carpeting from one party to the
other; this is his antecedent from ANPP to PDP and recently to APC.
iii.
Acting as if he is unsure to take up this
responsibility.
3. ATIKU ABUBAKAR; the following are his strengths and weaknesses.
HIS STRENGTHS.
i.
He is “experienced”, having served as Vice President
of the nation and was involved in some policy formation and execution.
ii.
Money is not an issue because he was able to amass
wealth for himself while/when he was the Vice-President.
iii.
He has a broad base national support, name and
recognition.
HIS
WEAKNESSES.
i.
He is perceived by many as corrupt.
ii.
During the Obasanjo privatization era, he was at the
centre, “using the nation’s money to acquire the people’s property for
himself”.
iii.
His reputation has been marred/dented by the former
President Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo rtd. and the former EFCC boss; Mr. Nuhu
Ribadu.
4. GEN. MUHAMMADU BUHARI; the following are his strengths and
weaknesses.
HIS STRENGTHS.
i.
Perceived by many as a man of integrity.
ii.
He possess a strong military background and some
thinks that this will be a major plus in crushing terrorism.
HIS
WEAKNESSES.
i.
Some say he is a Religious Fanatic.
ii.
Others say that, Age is not on his side.
iii.
After 3 attempts on the Presidency he is still unable
to build a vast support across the Southern region of Nigeria.
Hey, this is just Charles McAustine’s point-of-view
and opinion.
Among
these people, who do you think is the best man for the job?
