How many instances are we going to say that that’s the answer to Nigeria’s downside? We ought to return to the parliamentary system. One factor that offers me pleasure is that Obasanjo continues to be alive and I do know that he will probably be crying on a regular basis as a result of God launched him from jail to come back and repair Nigeria, however he failed attributable to his greed. He had the capability; he was the appropriate individual at the moment, when he was launched to repair this nation, however due to greed, he wished a 3rd time period and when he didn’t get it, he was not able to pursue the agenda for the wellbeing of Nigerians.
We are simply begging the present president, who has been an apostle of restructuring to do it. I heard him saying that he was going to do it slowly. His Yoruba individuals is not going to forgive him if he fails to restructure Nigeria. And let me remind him that the Yoruba individuals will query his kids, if he fails to do this. If he didn’t restructure Nigeria, within the subsequent 100 years, Yoruba individuals will query his grandchildren and nice grandchildren. The Yoruba individuals have that capability. We stated we would like restructuring now and he’s speaking about doing it slowly whereas the enemies are calculating the way to derail something known as restructuring.
Many individuals thought the kidnapping of college kids will finish with Buhari’s authorities. But, it seems it’s nonetheless with us, even on a higher scale; what’s your thought on it?
That is as a result of no one was prosecuted throughout Buhari’s time. You know, these criminals will first take a look at the physique language of the leaders earlier than they function. When they checked out Buhari’s physique language, they knew that he was not desirous about something. We are listening to now that folks used his signature to gather billions of Naira. If we ask this present authorities to parade the individuals concerned on nationwide tv in order that we are able to all know them, they won’t. If they’re paraded on tv, no one will strive such nonsense once more, however they won’t parade them.
So, once they see that the individuals weren’t paraded by this authorities, they’ll know that it’s enterprise as normal; the sport continues and that’s how each society operates. The second they weren’t paraded, kidnapping and banditry began, and assumed a higher dimension. Their agent will inform them that there isn’t any downside; that we now have a weak president like Buhari. We don’t wish to have one other weak president like Buhari. You will see that the economic system will survive and issues will start to vary.
Why is kidnapping of youngsters occurring nearly each day? It is as a result of the brokers are telling the abductors that the present president is weak. And I would like the present president to show them flawed that he’s not a weak president. That is simply the answer to the incessant kidnapping of youngsters; if he can show that he’s not a weak president, all the things will probably be alright.
The labour unions are calling for an upward overview of the minimal wage, do you suppose that could be a answer to the employees’ financial challenges?
Not in any respect; that may’t be the answer. I don’t know what the labour unions are saying; they need to cease all these silly talks. Is all of it Nigerians which can be working? We are saying that inflation is inflicting issues for each household, and they’re speaking about minimal wage; what’s minimal wage? Minimum wage just isn’t even our downside once more. If we’re nonetheless importing completed oil merchandise, no quantity of minimal wage enhance will deal with the employees’ downside. In truth, much less than two p.c of Nigeria’s inhabitants is working, if you’re speaking about minimal wage.
If the greenback continues to be making nonsense of the Naira; if we’re nonetheless spending {dollars} as our forex; if the world financial institution continues to be directing us on what to do, what can the minimal wage do? Nothing. Our downside is that we’re listening to foreigners who management us by means of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. We are nonetheless listening to them; we’re nonetheless borrowing from them. What is minimal wage?
If the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) president comes out in a crowd to speak about that nonsense, offended Nigerians will bundle him, slap him left and proper, and throw him away; is he drunk? Is it the difficulty of minimal wage that we’re speaking about when there may be inflation all over the place? The crude oil we produce, we’re nonetheless importing it to run our automobiles and industries and shamelessly, our individuals are nonetheless going to different nations to search for traders when corporations that have been in Nigeria earlier than a few of us have been born, are leaving the nation. Industries that have been in Nigeria earlier than Buhari and Tinubu have been born, are leaving the nation, and we’re operating to different nations in search of international traders. Are these traders not seeing the outdated corporations leaving Nigeria due to inflation and poverty?
We have additionally heard that the gasoline subsidy that was earlier eliminated is again, what do you need to say about that?
If subsidy is again, why are we in a worse scenario than we have been in the course of the Buhari’s time? We don’t know who’s telling us the reality; we don’t even know the place we’re. How kids and wives is not going to die of hunger or commit suicide due to poverty within the subsequent two, three hours, is what Nigerians are speaking about now. If you ask the minister of details about this subsidy, he’ll say one factor; should you ask the President’s spokesman, he’ll say one other factor; and should you additionally ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs, he’ll equally say one thing else; are you able to think about?
What I’m begging the present president who’s a fellow comrade of June 12 is to place his toes on the bottom, make historical past for himself and provides us that pleasure of place that comrades are in authorities. Prof Wole Soyinka did it as a comrade, when he headed the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC). Beko Ransome Kuti did it when he was chairman of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). Tinubu, we beg you within the identify of God, within the identify of these comrades who’re lifeless in the course of the battle, to save lots of us; give us that perception that it was when a comrade entered the Aso Rock that Nigeria witnessed superb years.
Do you suppose this authorities is severe about preventing corruption?
It is straightforward to struggle corruption if the federal government needs. It is simply to encompass your self with males of Obafemi Awolowo’s integrity; males of Anthony Enahoro’s integrity and males of Aminu Kano’s integrity. That was why Yakubu Gowon succeeded. Before Tinubu assumed workplace, I had an interview, the place I instructed him to go and examine the archives in Ibadan about Awolowo to know why the western area was the sunshine of Africa in the course of the regional authorities. I additionally begged him to go to Gowon, and discover out from him, how he managed to prosper Nigeria in the course of the civil war period.
Despite the war, Nigeria by no means borrowed a kobo from anyone or anyplace. Go and ask Gowon how he did it. He didn’t go to Gowon; not till not too long ago, when the ECOWAS concern was embarrassing him that he consulted Gowon. I instructed him that Gowon continues to be alive for a goal; God continues to be maintaining him alive for a goal and that he ought to go and pay him a go to to find out how he was capable of handle a civil war scenario with out borrowing. Buhari’s eight years have been worse than the Nigerian civil war period. It was a authorities of wickedness; you can’t describe the wickedness of Buhari’s authorities. It was worse than the Nigerian civil war. I instructed Tinubu to seek the advice of Gowon and learn how he was capable of handle the civil war, as a result of after the civil war, the Nigerian economic system boomed extra than another interval in our historical past. So, I suggested him to go and ask Gowon the key however I don’t suppose he ever visited him. He didn’t go to Gowon; he didn’t go to the archive in Ibadan to understudy the secrets and techniques of Awolowo’s financial energy and knowledge.
If he needs to struggle corruption, he should encompass himself with males of knowledge like Gowon did. Not those who introduced 500 luggage of rice in the course of the election and all that. We have handed that stage. He ought to encompass himself with strong individuals like Gowon. Gowon was the youngest individual at the moment. During the primary press convention after the loss of life of Aguiyi Ironsi, a journalist requested Gowon how a 32-yr-outdated younger man like him was going to handle a posh nation like Nigeria. Gowon instructed the journalists to go searching and see the sensible those who surrounded him. He instructed them that with these males of integrity round him, he wouldn’t have any downside managing Nigeria. So, even when Tinubu is outdated, if he has strong individuals the best way Gowon chosen his excos and advisers, he would succeed. He ought to overlook about sentiment and search for the best way ahead. He ought to search for guys who will transfer the nation and who will inform him the blunt fact.
Recently, Nigeria misplaced one of many heroes of the June 12 battle, Frank Kokori. As a kind of who have been within the trenches for the June 12 battle, what are you able to say about his demise?
Before his loss of life, I used to be on tv begging the comrades in authorities now to assist Kokori as a result of he was within the hospital mattress. I begged President Tinubu, who was a part of the battle in the course of the army period, to mobilise his individuals within the authorities to assist Kokori at that time limit. I instructed all of the activists in authorities that now could be the time for them in authorities and that they need to help one in every of their very own, however all of them stored deaf ears and deserted him to his destiny.
I thank the Delta State Government for standing by him throughout his final days on earth. Now you ask, why did they neglect Kokori? The first authorities that uncared for and handled Kokori like a leper was the Buhari authorities, the place they made him Chairman of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Funds (NSITF) when Dr Chris Ngige was the Minister of Labour.
When Ngige was appointed to supervise a ministry beneath which Kokori was to serve, I protested as a result of I knew it wasn’t going to work. I do know that Buhari simply got here to energy for revenge. He was offended that Babangida locked him up and Nigerians didn’t do something to Babangida for that. I do know that Buhari didn’t come to the federal government to assist Nigerians. He was bitter with Nigerians. I knew that there was no manner Ngige and Kokori might work collectively as a result of Kokori was too respectable to work with Ngige.
And I used to be proved proper when Kokori was pissed off; he was by no means inaugurated as chairman of the board of NSITF. None of the comrades that have been a part of the June 12 battle got here to his help. It was due to Kokori’s detention that I mobilised the riverine communities, together with the Ijaw individuals, to be a part of civil disobedience in Lagos. I instructed our those who they’d kill Kokori if we didn’t come out to hitch the Yoruba to struggle for June 12.
Mind you, June 12 wasn’t a Yoruba agenda; it was a Nigerian concern. But, on the twilight of his life, when he most wanted his civil society household, he was deserted. All the human rights teams, together with the president, deserted Kokori. I’m not even accusing the president as a result of right this moment, the president is surrounded by those that name themselves civil society individuals, however all of them pretended as if Kokori didn’t exist.
Shame on the conscience of all of the activists; disgrace on all of the activists which can be alive, particularly these parading the corridors of energy as veteran journalists. Who have been these making information for them? Was it not Kokori? Those who have been within the Tell Magazine, the News Magazine and all that, disgrace on their conscience. I’ll by no means blame the president as a result of these journalists who benefitted from Kokori are all discovering cowl within the identify of the federal government after their paper died. Who was making information for them to promote their papers in these days; was it not Kokori?
Today, they’re licking free ice cream and consuming free tea in Aso Rock and so they have all forgotten Kokori? I thank the Delta State Governor who visited him within the hospital and assisted him earlier than his loss of life.
