Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure; and Wole Balogun, Ado Ekiti

Former Governor of Abia State and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, at the weekend continued his peace advocacy tour with a visit to Ondo and Ekiti states.

In Ado-Ekiti, Kalu, who is acting chairman of the Advisory Board for National Movement for Re-election President Muhammadu Buhari took a swipe at  former president Olusegun Obasanjo, who he said ran the  most corrupt democratic government in the history of the nation.

Kalu, who expressed resentment at the comment credited to Obasanjo asking President Buhari not to seek second term in office, said the former number one citizen lacked the moral standing to stop a president  that has been the most selfless in Nigeria’s history from contesting.

Kalu, who was welcomed to Ekiti State by an APC governorship aspirant  and former speaker, Femi Bamisile pleaded with Nigerians to embrace the second term bid of  President Buhari.

Addressing the APC members at Bamisile’s house at GRA in Ado Ekiti, Kalu said: “Nigerians should tell former President Obasanjo to stop writing frivolous letters. It was said that someone who behaved badly by not listening to advice could talk like this. Let me tell you emphatically that President Buhari will contest again, don’t listen to letter writers like Obasanjo. Obasanjo has been president twice, so he should keep his letter in Otta for himself.

“If anyone will caution President Buhari, it should not be Obasanjo. If you check your records very well, he remains the most corrupt president ever. He came into office with less than N20,000 and he later built multibillion naira Otta Farm, Library Project  and the Hilltop Mansion.

“That is why somebody like me is in Ekiti to tell our people not to listen to Obasanjo. He met the  economy in comatose, today President Buhari has raised the foreign reserve from $23 billion  to as much as $47 billion dollars while the menace of Boko Haram has been defeated,” Kalu stated.

On the July 14 governorship poll, Kalu urged Ekiti delegates to vote wisely, by voting an aspirant who has the political network and dexterity to defeat Fayose.

“You need to work very hard because President Buhari doesn’t believe in rigging. I am ready to support whoever you bring up as candidate here in Ekiti for the July 14 election, because I am part of you.

“If I am to choose for you, I will choose Hon. Bamisile, but this lies on Ekiti delegates. However, as a national leader of APC, I am ready to support whoever you bring up.

“My attention was called from Ondo State on Saturday that Governor Fayose said I should not come to Ekiti, Fayose is my boy, he can’t stop me from coming. He is my boy and he knows he can’t stop me on anything. Governor Fayose was in my house for 90 days after he was forced out of office, he is my friend but he has gone beyond his limit by saying a bonafide elder statesman like me should not come to Ekiti.

“Fayose was in Abia last week, nobody said he should not come, so I have declared war on him. Even if I sleep on the floor, I will still defeat Fayose on any issue,” he said.

He promised to work hard to ensure that APC wins the 2018 poll, so that the battle can be easy for the party in the 2019 presidential poll when Buhari will be recontesting.

As the party holds a make or mar National Executive Council (NEC) meeting today, Kalu said the ruling party would continue to be guided by its constitution.

He allayed fears on the contentious issue of tenure elongation rocking the party.

According to him, “Our party is guided by constitution and members of the party have respect for the constitution. The President, Buhari himself insisted that the constitution of the party must be followed to the letter in any matter affecting the party. So, the issue of tenure extension does not occur,” he stated.

He maintained that leaders of the party will emerge through congress in all the state chapters, while the convention of the party will produce leaders at the national level.