• Insists PDP can never bounce back, for massive looting of treasury

Former Abia State governor, Dr Orji Uzor Kalu, has said that President Muhammadu Buhari may not be interested in being given an automatic ticket to re-contest for the 2019 presidential election, as he would want other candidates to explore the democratic process to test their popularity.

Speaking in an interview yesterday at the private wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, Kalu aligned his views with other politicians calling on Buhari to go for the primaries ahead of the 2019 elections.

According to Kalu, President Buhari as a democrat would want every interested candidate to be given a chance to test their popularity and exercise their democratic right.

“Buhari himself is not even looking for automatic ticket. Buhari is a man that is very fair in what he does. And his feeling is that if any candidate is willing to contest against him, he should come to the Eagle Square.

“And some schools of thought are saying, ‘No, if in the United States, Obama was given automatic ticket, for President Clinton was given automatic ticket, the first and second Bush were each given automatic ticket.

“So President Buhari is also feeling that automatic ticket for him is not right. He said open the space for other people who also want to contest. He wants the openness of the primary to take place.

He further said: “The contest should be thrown open. There would be no rancour. We are in a democracy and I would vote for the president. I’ve said it times without number that President Buhari needs to consolidate on his achievements because the President is very popular. He is still the only person carrying 12 million votes on his back.

“His tenure has been besieged by illness. So the President genuinely deserves second tenure. We are not afraid of anybody who wants to contest against the president.”

Commenting on the goings on in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Kalu said it would not bounce back because of the massive looting of the nation’s treasury during the last administration.

He said the international community was outraged by the massive looting of the nation’s treasury by PDP, saying that it would amount to the greatest disservice to call for the return of PDP.

Kalu said Buhari was under restraint not to expose the gargantuan corruption that took place at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

He said if Nigerians knew what happened at the NNPC, they would not allow any of the looters to escape through this airport or any border out of Nigeria.

His words: “How can they bounce back when the treasury was looted? How can they bounce back when the international community doesn’t see anything good in them? How can they bounce back when we gave them our treasury, they opened and looted it.

“We would call names if they want us to call names in future. All the world powers knew what happened and this is why they tactically insisted that PDP must leave power. PDP committed what was very shameful to have been seen in a democratic process. There is no system that is not without corruption but going to loot is an affront to the Nigerian people.

“They opened the treasury and looted it. President Buhari has been restrained by some world powers not to open up what happened in the NNPC. If Nigerians know what happened in NNPC, those people would not pass through this airport, people would not leave them. What they did is what ears should not even hear. How can they come back? They will definitely go into oblivion, they would never win election again in Nigeria unless they change their name.”

Kalu was however reluctant to comment on the resignation of the former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), saying if he had had the opportunity to advise him, he would have asked him to remain to rebuild the APC.

“To be honest with you, Atiku was my boss and he is still my boss. And I hardly don’t want to discuss Atiku Abubakar. You know he is very close to me. The question you are asking me is a lot of task but I wish him well. If I was to advise him before he left, I would have said, ‘Don’t leave, let us build a large team together.’ If he wanted to contest against the President, it would be open at the Eagle Square. If he wins, we would support him.

“If the President wins, we would support the President. But running from one party to the other, you remember I am the only Nigerian since the present democratic process who has been in only two parties. I have been in PPA and PDP. I didn’t run back and forward. No, I was in opposition since 2006, when I was deregistered in PDP. I was in opposition until November 16, 2016, when I joined the APC.

“It is not every election year we would go and form a new political party. It doesn’t entrench our democratic process. I am feeling it and I am seeing it that it is not the right thing to do. What are we going to teach the younger ones?”

He maintained that Buhari was gaining popularity and acceptance in the South East, as many leaders of thought had started to see him in a different light.

Kalu explained: “Even in the South East where he didn’t do well, President Buhari is making a lot of inroads. The role he played during the Anambra election, other presidents would have written the results.

“They have done it before. But the President said, ‘no every ballot paper must be counted’ and they were counted. If it were other presidents, APC would be jubilating home with victory. But President Buhari said, ‘no, I would not tolerate that.

“He warned the police, INEC, the party and said ‘every one vote must be counted’ and that was what was done. Have we ever had a president like that in Nigeria? The answer is no. Other ones would come and even put armoured car in my house in Igbere. That’s what we have been seeing. So why don’t Nigerians embrace this man who is saying I might be slow but do things through due process 

“I’ve spoken to some Catholic bishops, priests and some Anglican bishops and some priests in the Presbyterian Church, who used to sit with me and criticise the president. They are now telling me, ‘We don’t know the President is this kind of person.

“So I have been in the South East for the past two weeks. I have been there from election period  till now. “So I know the mentality of our people now and they are going to vote for the man. Whether it’s PDP, APC or APGA, all of them are going to vote for the man. You can see Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi has already endorsed the President for second term. Whether Obiano (Anambra Governor) is crossing over to APC or PDP, he would definitely endorse the president. So the President has support in the region.”