• Says Buhari fighting on too many fronts

 

From Murphy Ganagana, Jos

FORMER Director of the Department of State Ser- vice (DSS), Mr. Mike Ejiofor at the weekend, took a critical appraisal of the state of the nation particularly on developments bordering on internal security, and warned that Nigeria is currently sitting on a time bomb which could snap at any moment except President Muhammadu Buhari changed his approach to some issues.

He says the signs are ominous, and the president needs honest advice and support to steer the nation out of the whirlwind.

In an exclusive interview with Daily Sun in Abuja, the former intelligence chief expressed concern that Buhari was taking on too many fronts at the same time, just as he lamented that his advisers were afraid to talk and advise him rightly.

Excerpts:

Government’s face-off with ex-Niger Delta war- lord, Chief Government Ekpemupolo (aliasTom- polo) and the crackdown on some of his former commanders

Well, we must first of all draw a line between politics and criminality. We have pure crimes and political crimes, and you don’t expect the same outcome, the same results or the same solutions to both problems. By that, I mean we all know the role Tompolo played in the process that brought peace and stability to the Niger Delta. Don’t also forget that the mainstay of our economy is oil, and the people of the Niger Delta where the oil comes from. So, whatever govern- ment is doing, must put into consideration first of all, our economy, the politics of the area and the stability of the zone.

While not speaking for Tompolo, I am aware that some of the contracts being questioned were approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), and it is important. I don’t have the facts, but if it is contracts for pipeline protection, it is in the public domain that these things were approved by the FEC. Nobody knows the reason he has not shown up; you cannot be above the law. But the rate at which we are going, I am afraid there might be renewed hostility in the Niger Delta,

and that will not augur well for the country. So, I will want to urge the government to critically assess its approach, some of these issues require political solutions that would be looked at politically. You see, the Niger Delta is very,

very critical and delicate, don’t also forget that we have the issue of MASSOB. I don’t think the government has handled it rightly or appropriately, particularly the issue of MASSOB, and I am not placing the blame directly or solely on the government, but on the leaders of the South-East and the governors, the political leaders of the South-East. Take for instance, the issue of Kanu, this is a young man who didn’t witness the civil war, and don’t forget that most of them who are fighting the cause of Biafra did not witness the war. I witnessed the war. I expected the South- east leaders to come together and call these young men, let them articulate their grievances and present it to the government. That was exactly how the issue of Boko Haram was mishandled. If we don’t nip it in the bud, it becomes a greater problem; in fact, they have even threatened to go into armed struggle. I don’t see how we, as Nigerians, would be able to face the issue of the Northeast that we are yet to contend with, we have the Niger Delta, and we have the Southeast, that will be too much. Let us try as much as possible to reduce the fronts the government is facing to enable good governance because when there is no secrecy, there won’t be any meaningful development. Some of these issues have to be resolved politically.

Government’s handling of Tompolo’s case and fears of re- grouping of militant leaders

If Tompolo as a militant leader, a very well known militant leader, is being sought for by the government, you should expect his followers to react, they won’t fold their arms. But I would ad- vise that he turns himself in, nobody is above the law, because if he fails to turn himself in, people will now begin to think that he has something to hide. A few explosions have taken place; he is denying it that he is not responsible for it, but let him turn himself in. Nobody, not even the government can kill anybody. The argument is that he took the Federal Government to court, I don’t have the details. Maybe you may need to look into it, that he took the government to court first and it didn’t obey, that is why he is not

turning himself in. He has been declared wanted and I do hope they will be able to get him because the terrain in that area is very difficult and we should not deceive ourselves about it. I was in the Joint Task Force, I had interactions with them and I know how that area is very difficult, that is why I always advise and suggest that some of these country; I have put in my life for this country, and any- thing that will bring peace, I will try as much as possible to proffer the solution with all good intentions.

MASSOB’s threat of arms struggle and moves to forge alliance with Niger Delta militants?

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Well, it will lead us to greater security challenges and that is the point I was making. There is a proverb in my place that says when you are putting load on a child’s head, you should systematically be removing some of them instead of carrying more and putting on his head. This is democracy.

Is Buhari Misfiring?

things need political solutions.
And if I may come up on these political solutions,

this idea of some people insisting that people must be prosecuted, I am one of the advocates of the option of plea bargain; it is a political solution. Corruption has a way of fighting back and some of these people have the means of hiring Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs). After some time, you might end up securing no conviction, but if we have established cases of corruption, let Government go into negotiation, take 80 per cent of the proceeds and we move forward. This issue of you are seizing money here, you are seizing money there, I don’t know where it is going to take us to. I am afraid we might end up spending more money; there won’t be time for governance and at the end of the day, the government will not be accountable to the people.

Explosions in the Niger Delta and the implications?

The signs are ominous, very ominous. It is just like the issue of Boko Haram. Some misguided elements might be doing these things without the knowledge of the leaders, to tell the government that well, if you are after our leader, this is our area and we control the economy. That is why I say it is very, very critical that government handles it properly. You see, a resolution has not been taken on the issue of the Amnesty programme; that one is still lingering because people are still agitating that their interests are not protected. So, my advice, talking as a patriotic Nigerian, is that we should reduce the number of fronts we are facing. People who have been in government and taking government money must be made to account for it; but a situation where you see private individuals who are businessmen, people will be afraid to even engage in government business now, and it is not good for gov ernment, because they are afraid of what will happen tomorrow. If APC is out of power today, the next one will come and instead of pursuing the art of governance, they will be busy pursuing the previous administration. I am not partisan, I am concerned about this country; I have put in my life for this country, and any- thing that will bring peace, I will try as much as possible to proffer the solution with all good intentions.

MASSOB’s threat of arms struggle and moves to forge alliance with Niger Delta militants?

Well, it will lead us to greater security challenges and that is the point I was making. There is a proverb in my place that says when you are putting load on a child’s head, you should systematically be removing some of them instead of carrying more and putting on his head. This is democracy.

Is Buhari Misfiring?

I wouldn’t say so, but what I think is that he needs more consultation. My own view is that he is a retired General, he had been Head of State, he had been involved in governance; so, all these people working with him are afraid to talk to him because of his body language of fighting corruption; nobody is free to ad- vise him.

Are his advisers are not free?

They are not free to advise him rightly and this is a democracy. Even within the APC, if you talk to some of them, there is a crack, because they feel they are not being carried along.

That was why I asked if Buhari was not misfiring because he seems to be firing from so many cylinders

There are words we shouldn’t use for our leaders. All they need from us is advice and support. I wouldn’t describe my president as misfiring, but he needs more consultation with people. You asked if it is possible to de-cage his advisers, why not. You see, my problem is that our leaders have refused to learn. I will give you an instance; the only man who had a cabal that he had control of, was Olusegun Obasanjo, even though I am not his fan. The cabal destroyed Umaru Yar’Adua; the cabal destroyed Goodluck Jonathan, and in the case of Buhari, from all indications there seems to be a cabal, but not very prominent as it used to be because for others, you could easily identify who members of the cabal are. But now you cannot say who the members of the cabal are because of the age disparity and the respect they have for him. You cannot go to him and think you can begin to control him except of course, two or three persons whom I don’t want to mention their names, who are in his age bracket, they grew up together and can talk to him.

How do we decage his advisers?

I didn’t say they are in a cage; what I am saying is that they are not free. Of course, of all the ministers, who do you hear talking? Apart from the Minister of Information, who sometimes too, his statements are misguided, which minister is talking; why are they not talking, why are they not working?