Abati said prior to the
presidential election, the APC had threatened to form a parallel government and
had even predicted that Jonathan would be like former Ivorian President,
Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to leave office despite losing and was eventually dragged before the International Criminal Court.
Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the President, Mr. Reuben Abati, made the remarks in an article published on his website, ‘Right of Reply: Olusegun Adeniyi’s Trip to Babel,’ while insisting that Jonathan would forever be remembered as a hero who puts his opponents to shame.
He said, “Contrary to
insinuations, they (PDP chairmen) were not removed by President Jonathan.
Okwesilieze Nwodo was removed by a court of law due to Enugu State politics.
Dr. Haliru Bello who served as acting chairman after him was later appointed
Minister of Defence in 2011. Alhaji Abubakar Baraje succeeded Bello also in
acting capacity to complete Nwodo’s aborted tenure. The story of the exit of
Vincent Ogbulafor
Laurent Gbagbo, who refused to leave office despite losing and was eventually dragged before the International Criminal Court.
Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the President, Mr. Reuben Abati, made the remarks in an article published on his website, ‘Right of Reply: Olusegun Adeniyi’s Trip to Babel,’ while insisting that Jonathan would forever be remembered as a hero who puts his opponents to shame.
He writes, “By his very
unusual and highly symbolic act of graceful concession, President Jonathan
snatched glorious victory from the jaws of seeming defeat. He outsmarted his
traducers and became, overnight, a hero of global proponents of true democracy
in Africa.
“While many of his
opponents seemed obsessed with power at all costs and by all means possible, by
calling General Buhari to concede victory, President Jonathan fully lived up to
his often-stated conviction that the country is more important than individual
ambitions and that leadership should be more about sacrifice than the pursuit
of self-interest.
“Some had threatened that
he would end up like Cote d’Ivoire’s Laurent Gbagbo. He proved to be a much
better student of history. They promised that if his electoral defeat which
they had dictated as inevitable did not come to pass, they would instigate
chaos and confusion, form a parallel government and make Nigeria ungovernable,
hang it all on his head and send him to the International Criminal Court.
“In the end, he
short-circuited their conspiracy and showed that he belongs to a global hall of
honour, not infamy.”
Abati denied reports that
Jonathan was pressured into conceding defeat. He said Jonathan had already
started moving his belongings out of the presidential villa since April 1, when
the Independent national Electoral Commission announced the results.
The presidential spokesman
said the Peoples Democratic Party was still facing the trauma of defeat. He,
therefore, urged commentators and members of the public to let the party grieve
in peace rather than continue to heat up the polity.
Abati also cleared the air
on why the Jonathan administration had about six different PDP chairmen.
Vanguard
You can say that again Reuben, I agree
ReplyDeleteThe result was obvious so if he started moving his things out since April its believable and is suggest he is honest to himself.
ReplyDelete