•Former President Olusegun Obasanjo Photo: Sun News Publishing

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Assistant National Auditor of the Peoples Democratic Party (North Central) Dr. Godwin Daboh Adzuana has criticized the emergence of former President Olusegun Obasanjo as Chairman Board of Trustees of the PDP.

He also describes the recent declaration of assets by President Musa Yar’Adua as commendable and urged other public office holders to emulate him. And then the big one: Daboh says Obasanjo is worth N180 billion in shares, fixed and immovable assets. True? Well, we can only challenge the former president to declare his assets publicly to prove or disprove it.

The emergence of Obasanjo as BOT chairman of PDP
The position here is that I am concerned that Obasanjo is not a fit and proper person to be the chairman of the Board of Trustees of the PDP.

The Obasanjo era in Nigeria has been an era of pain, an era of tears and era of deprivation. An era of vindictiveness, an era of callousness. I cannot understand. I am a party loyalist but the point here is that the emergence of former President Obasanjo as chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees has potential disaster to our party. Thank God that the PDP is a very solid party. But I am sure that there is no way the majority of members of the PDP can accept Obasanjo as the chairman of the Board of Trustees.

With the damage Obasanjo has done to this country, the best thing he could have done is to go back to Ota and look after the billions that he has amassed. I am a leader of the PDP, but I am opposed to Obasanjo’s emergence because the decision to make him chairman was taken by 25 members of the Board of Trustees while the Board of Trustees is made up of over 80 members. Only 25 sat down and took that decision. And I want to appeal to Mr. President that as a man of due process, for such fundamental change to take place in the PDP, you must have a full house.

Even though Obasanjo was going to emerge, the meeting was fixed for 8pm, suddenly Obasanjo changed it to 1pm. I know at least 11 members of the Board of Trustees who were taking flight, planning to arrive Abuja by 4pm. And by the time they arrived the meeting had been completed. This is unfair. The point here is that our party has come to stay.

It is the only political party that is from the kindred to the national level. But under a Yar’Adua presidency, Yar’Adua is now the leader of the PDP. He must ensure that in election and in anything that is done, due process is followed. The meeting of the Board of Trustees did not form a quorum. And I remember that the president promised Nigerians that under his administration, due process has to be followed. For me, the election of Obasanjo as Board of Trustees chairman is a temporary thing, he cannot remain there.

There is no way we can allow him to do what he did in the federal government. The leader of the PDP is the national chairman and not the Board of Trustees chairman. The constitution is specific about that, so there is no amount of manipulation by Obasanjo or his cronies that can change it. I want to say that, for Nigeria to move forward, there has to be clean break politically and governmentally from Obasanjo. He is a student so, he should go and concentrate on his studies and write his memoirs and enjoy the wealth he has acquired for the past eight years. He should leave us alone.

Yar’Adua’s declaration of assets
When I told people in November last year that Yar’Adua is the president that this country deserves and is going to get, people thought it was a joke. Look at how the man has declared his assets openly. Everybody knows what Yar’Adua is. You can see a man who had been a governor for eight years worth less than one billion, himself and his wife. I know of some governors whose wives are worth more than N5 billion. For the first time in my life, I am proud to be a Nigerian.

This singular act of the president deserves commendation and emulation. And by this, all the governors, the vice president and every public officer must declare his assets and it must be done this month. When I knew the night before that the president was going to declare his assets, I sat down that day and took a full bottle of red wine even though I have not been drinking for a long time. I knew that something great was about to happen. Since our independence in 1960 this is the first time that we got a president, a realistic leader.

For example, my own intelligence sources have told me that Obasanjo is worth over N180 billion assets, in shares and other things. How much did he have when he was going to stand election? When Babangida went to meet him then, he said he had N20,000 in his account in 1998. Today Obasanjo is worth more than N180 billion in terms of assets, fixed and immovable assets, almost N200 billion.

Anenih cannot continue as chairman, Board of Trustees
I am not supporting the continuation of Anenih as the chairman of the Board of Trustees. He has been there for a long time. He is also responsible for some of the problems that happened. For example, the PDP took a decision to field David Mark, he went around, mobilizing governors and other people to go contrary to the decision of the Board of Trustees, and the decision of the National Executive Committee of which he was present at the meeting where the choice of David Mark was made.

He now turned himself and became the center of campaign for George Akume. He misled former Governor Akume and in fact, I was going to report him to the party and request that Anenih should be tried and sanctioned, because he breached a fundamental rule of the party. Which means that whether you agree or not with the party’s decision, you are bound to comply with it.

Once the majority has taken a decision, you don’t have a choice as a member of the PDP. But the party took a decision to zone the senate presidency to the north central and to a particular senator, David Mark, but Anenih became the center of campaign for Akume which was anti-party activity.

No other chance for Obasanjo
No, we need a break from the Obasanjo era in the party and in governance. And I know very well that Obasanjo cannot manipulate Yar’Adua. The Yar’Adua that I know is a man of integrity and today, every Nigerian is proud. And I take this opportunity to appeal to the opposition parties to withdraw their various petitions, join a government of national unity so that this country can move forward. I know that Yar’Adua has zero tolerance for corruption.

He is not the kind of man who will steal public money because he is a decent man who lives by what he has. Going through his assets declaration, are you not proud? I know some governors who are worth over N20 billion, but here is a humble man for him to have publicly told Nigerians who he is. And I can assure you that since the open declaration of his assets, everybody has been hailing him and most people are saying, let’s give this man a chance.