Islamic cleric and scholar Sheikh Ahmed Gumi has praised former
President Olusegun Obasanjo for standing up for his conviction and for
being bold to confront the government of President Goodluck Jonathan.
In the words of the Kaduna-based cleric, Mr. Obasanjo has “washed his
hands off innocent blood” by speaking up against the lapses of the
incumbent government. Last week, Mr. Obasanjo had leaked the contents of
an 18-page letter filled with allegations of corruption, misrule, and
dishonorable conduct against President Jonathan.
Speaking on Sahara TV over the weekend, Mr. Gumi defended Mr. Obasanjo’s position.
In a letter titled “Before It Is Too Late,” the former president
expressed grave concern on President Jonathan manner of governance. He
also accused the president of ineptitude and failure to deliver on his
electoral promises to Nigerians. In addition, Mr. Obasanjo charged that
President Jonathan had failed to curb corruption, had lost control of
national security, and was promoting divisiveness.
Mr. Gumi endorsed Mr. Obasanjo's position. “I expect all those
retired generals who are languishing in their luxurious buildings would
come out and speak against what is happening in Nigeria. Nobody did, so I
hail this man and I am ready to forgive him for all the things he did
against Nigeria,” Mr. Gumi said.
Responding to the issue of corruption during Mr. Obasanjo’s
Presidency, the Islamic cleric admitted to SaharaTV’s Rudolf Okonkwo
that there was corruption during Obasanjo’s tenure. “There was
corruption, yes,” he said. “But Obasanjo was not doing it to divide
Nigeria. He was doing it to help himself and his friends.”
Some of Mr. Obasanjo’s critics have also noted that he “imposed”
President Jonathan on Nigerians. But Mr. Gumi suggested that the motive
of Mr. Obasanjo, a two-time head of state, was to show Nigerians that
anyone from any ethnic group, including minority groups, could become
president. “The intention of Obasanjo, who fought the Biafran war, a war
of secession from Nigeria, his intention was never to bring somebody to
break Nigeria,” he said.
He sharply blamed President Jonathan for doing little to curb
corruption in his government and also for his lackadaisical approach to
the security crisis in the north-eastern part of Nigeria. In a veiled
reference to the scandal involving Aviation Minister Stella Oduah, who
spent $1.6 million ostensibly to acquire two bullet-proof cars, Mr. Gumi
asked, “How can the [National] Assembly investigate a case of fraud by
one Minister and convict the Minister, yet the President [is] taking no
action about that?”
The firebrand Islamic scholar also indicted President Jonathan for
hiding behind terror attacks by the Islamist group, Boko Haram, to
unleash his own brand of terror on Nigerians. He alleged that a series
of bombings across northern Nigeria, which seemed to have been
perpetuated by Boko Haram, were actually carried out by security
operatives under President Jonathan’s command. “Boko Haram are people
from the north-eastern part of Nigeria. And if you can remember, or if
you can even hear their language, you know that they are from the
north-eastern part. If they want to fight the president because he is a
southerner or a Christian, they will go to southern states and Christian
states to fight him there. They will not be exploding bombs in their
own towns,” the sheikh said. He added that Mr. Jonathan belongs to a
faction of Nigerians hell-bent on seceding from and breaking up the
Nigerian federation.
Presenting three scenarios all of which entailed Mr. Jonathan losing
power, the Islamic cleric stated that Mr. Obasanjo’s letter spells doom
for the president’s electoral chances in 2015. He said that Mr.
Jonathan’s options are to resign, to be impeached, or to risk being
humiliated at the polls in 2015. He advised the embattled president to
choose the first option.
“I don't think anybody can stand up now and say he will campaign for
Jonathan. It is finished. So the best way for him is to resign,” Mr.
Gumi said. He argued that Mr. Jonathan should seriously consider the
first option because Nigerians cannot be ruled by force anymore. “Nobody
will rule us again with a rigged election,” he said.
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