A former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, has begged former President Olusegun Obasanjo not to abandon President Goodluck Jonathan ahead of the February 14 presidential election.
Daniel’s plea came less than 24 hours after Obasanjo openly declared support for the re-election of Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, who is a member of the opposition All Progressives Congress.
Daniel, while addressing members of the Peoples Democratic Party at the inauguration of the Goodluck/Sambo Independent Support Team in Lagos on Saturday, said Obasanjo gave the people of the South-South region a sense of belonging by ensuring that Jonathan emerged as vice-president in 2007 and as President in 2011.
He, therefore, begged Obasanjo to finish what he started by ensuring that Jonathan completes his second term as President.
Daniel said, “Obasanjo should finish the job he started in 2011 because a job that is half-done is not done at all. It is the height of injustice for Jonathan and the South-South people not to be allowed to do a second-term. We, the Yoruba people are saying that for the reason of equity, Jonathan should be allowed for a second term and after that, power can shift to the North.”
Meanwhile, the Presidency on Saturday said President Goodluck Jonathan was ready at all times to appease former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
It also agreed with the ex-President that candidates in the forthcoming general elections should be judged by their performance.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said this in an interview withSUNDAY PUNCH.
Okupe was reacting to a statement credited to Obasanjo that performance, as against party loyalty, should be the overriding factor in voting for candidates in the February elections.
Okupe said Obasanjo was correct in his submission, which he described as statesman-like.
He said, “Obasanjo is right. I want Nigerians to vote for the next President based on performance. Let Buhari tell us his performance and Goodluck Jonathan should tell us his performance.
“Obasanjo is correct; there is nothing wrong with that. That is very statesman-like of him.
“I want my party’s candidates to win but this election is about performance. Luckily, Buhari has been a Head of State before, it does not matter how long he was in government. He was in government for 20 months; Murtala Muhammed was in government for six months and he became a hero.
“It is not an excuse that 20 months is not enough. In 20 months, Buhari showed clear attributes of indolence and incompetence. He did not add any value to the nation. He did not achieve anything. All he did was to be hard and harsh on people. He was busy harassing southerners like Awolowo and Ajasin.
“If you put that side-by-side with the performance of Jonathan, he has touched everything he met. All 24 airports have been refurbished. He has brought railway back to life. There is substantial achievement in power. We can only go forward, we can’t come back.”
When asked whether the President was still ready to mend fence with Obasanjo, the presidential aide said Jonathan had tremendous respect for the ex-President.
“This President is a liberal-minded President and he has a lot of respect for Obasanjo. He has never hidden that. He believes that Obasanjo is his political father, no matter whether they have disagreements or not.
“The President is ready at all times to make peace and appease the elderly gentleman,” Okupe said.
Similarly, the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has said it will not join issues with Obasanjo.
National Publicity Secretary of the party, Prof. Wale Oladipo, stated this in a telephone interview with our correspondent in Abuja on Saturday.
He said, “Baba (Obasanjo) remains our leader and therefore we won’t join issues with him. We will continue to work with him and other leaders of our party in Ogun State and Nigeria to achieve success.
“I can however assure you that Gboyega Isiaka is poised to win the governorship election in the state with the support of other members of our party in the state like the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina.”