You cannot force Buhari to resign – Senator Alex Usman Kadiri
All Progressives Congress chieftain, Senator Alex Usman Kadiri, bares his mind on security challenges, leadership selection process and calls for Buhari’s impeachment, among other issues in this interview with Kassim Omomia and Alex Emeje
The country appears stagnant. Nothing seems to be working. The economy is collapsing. What is wrong and why are we where we are?
The answer is simple. Our recruitment process is bad. After President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice-President Yemi Osibanjo, who are the other people surrounding them? What is the contribution of every other person in the Presidency? What are they contributing, even the ministers what are they contributing to the growth and the stability of the country?
I am from Kogi State and because of the love I have for my people, I ran for the governorship of my state, but because I could not afford to give the kind of money the voters expected from me, the former governor, Ibrahim Idris, won the election. He won the election not because he was more competent and qualified, but because the followers are after who will meet their immediate needs. They were not interested in looking for long time benefits.
Where did the All Progressives Congress miss the point?
APC got it wrong because the leadership is not competent. The party’s leadership is weak and is surrounded by weaker people. In other climes, in other countries, look at what happened when Joe Biden won the United States presidential election. He did not have to go to Ministry of Defence or Interior to look for people to be appointed into such offices. He just appointed them and those appointed have track records and they are performing.
When an administration is not working in democracy because of a weak President, what do you advise should be done?
Buhari is the leader of my party and I believe in my party. You cannot force the president to resign except he resigns on his own. And any attempt to force him to resign would lead to a turmoil and that is not good for the country. But we can force him to surround himself with capable people because if you choose the option of impeachment people will be divided along tribal and religious divide and that will be terrible for the country.
In other climes, where things work, you do not need to supervise anybody unlike in Nigeria where you can pick an idiot because he has money, because he is a godfather and so we allow things to go the way they want without anybody bothering to know whether you are dying or hungry.
What then do you suggest should be done, impeach him?
No, that will lead to pandemonium. People will begin to view it from both tribal and region angles. They will not even allow the Vice President to take over because they will say it is their turn and he must complete, even when things are going wrong. It is the problem we have in this country and until we start seeing things from an angle that will better the lots of the nation, we will remain where we are.
Why do you say Buhari should not be impeached?
That is what I just explained. Religious and tribal sentiment has killed this country. Even when things are not going the way they should be going, if our person is there, we close our eyes as if things are going normal. Look at the number of people that vote at the plenary in support of government, you can understand what I am saying.
Ethnic militias, self-styled vigilance groups, state sponsored security outfits are springing up for regional and self-protection. Is it not a sign of governance failure?
Of course, people are losing their lives every day. They are not being protected. What do you want them to do? I live close to Senator Ifeanyi Ubah. He lives in-between the Inspector-General of Police and I, so I can confirm that the number of policemen guiding him are more than that of the IG himself. And we are complaining that there are not enough police to guide the country.
These policemen guiding him all reside in Nyanya, Mararaba, some of them even live in shanties of Kuje and Gwagwalada and where there is turmoil, he himself becomes a target because they will see him as an oppressor. And that is the danger of not taking care of them adequately. If he wants to buy a bottle of coke not less than six policemen will follow him, whereas Nigerians are not being protected and they will tell you we do not have enough policemen.
There are agitations that presidency should go to South in 2023. Which part of the South do you support?
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo ruled for eight years. The former President Goodluck Jonathan also ruled for six years and currently Vice-President Yemi Osibanjo from the South-West is in the office. But the South-South still believes that they have not completed their own term and so they are still pursuing the completion of that one term plus the Yar’Adua’s own Jonathan completed.
The South-East cannot get it because who is there? My wife is from the East and so I am not opposed to it. From Rochas Okorocha and Hope Uzodima, they have issues with EFCC. For you to vie for Presidency you must belong to a political party. Former CBN Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo and Okonjo-Iweala are very good materials but have not electoral value.
As for Bola Tinubu, he cannot get it, but he can support somebody from the South-West and he has them. People like Babatunde Fashola, Tunde Fowler, Vice-President Yemi Osibanjo, among others are there for him to support. But for him to think of getting that office, he cannot get it.
But Bola Tinubu is seriously working for that seat…
Working for something or pursuing something are two different things. I have also explained that to you. Osibanjo is there now, and Jonathan handed over to this government. The North-East and the North-Central where I am from also stand a good ground to make a case for presidency. Since after the First Republic, the North-Central and the South-East have not had a shot at the presidency and if we want stability, justice, and fairness, it is natural that these two zones be considered for presidency.
Part of these agitations we are experiencing is because there is no equitable distribution in the way political offices are shared. The only way we can have stable environment is when we begin to see ourselves as equal stakeholders in the country.
What is your take on the bogus allowances reportedly earned by members of the National Assembly?
Well, I would not want to criticise my own people. During our own time, senators were earning just N3m and this bogus salary of N20m and N25m that people are talking about is not true if you look at the value of Naira now. By the time you buy what you need in the house, beddings, chairs, it was even better during our time than now. People are just making statements they cannot defend. We have been hearing of senators earning millions and that is not true, it is a mere allegation.
Despite flexing muscles with former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the Senate in your time had a warm cordiality with him, what was the secret?
Yes, despite occasional face-up with Obasanjo, not that Obasanjo was afraid of us, but we respected each other. Any bill that went to him received presidential approval. The Education Committee which I was privileged to chair, there was the need to amend a bill under the Education Trust Fund (ETF) it went to Obasanjo and it was approved. See people like Arthur Nzeribe, Mrs. Gloria Ita-Giwa, Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, among many others were senators in our time. We did not allow our differences to affect our legislative work.
What is the message of hope for Nigerians and how will you assess development in your state, Kogi?
My message for Nigerians is to keep hope alive. We should be patient for Buhari to finish his term and leave. We should blame ourselves for what we are experiencing now. This is because we voted for him, doing otherwise now could lead to pandemonium.
For my state, Kogi, it is serious. You see, in Yoruba land, they are educated, and they are well-fed and so they are well governed. What is happening in Kogi State cannot happen in Osun or Lagos State. The governor stays in Abuja and award all the contracts and nobody can question him.
Other governors invite their colleagues to come and commission projects. For the six years of Yahaya Bello, no project has been commissioned, except the Revenue House. We had a meeting with the vice president, and I was asked to speak on behalf of my people, and I told the vice President that APC is our party but how do we win the election. I told the vice president that the governor is promoting thuggery in the state, but he denied it. I told him the truth because I do not go to him for anything.
