Disturbed by recurring
cases of security breaches,
particularly, in parts of the
North and Abuja, the
Federal Capital Territory,
Nigerians have continued
to express deep concern
over efforts being made
by the police to fish out
masterminds.
In charging the various
arms of the nation ’s
security formations, for
prompt action, some
Nigerians have not only
condemned certain
inflammatory remarks by
supposedly well-placed
individuals and statesmen
but also insisted that
sources of such unguided
vituperations, capable of
inciting the manner of
senseless bombings, be
thoroughly investigated.
Of particular need for
mention are comments by
former Vice President,
Atiku Abubakar that those
who make peaceful
change impossible make
violent change inevitable
in veiled reference to the
increasing popularity of
the incumbent President.
The former Vice President,
who emerged as
consensus candidate of
the North, within the
ruling Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP), was quoted
as making the remark to
dramatise his opposition
to the aspirations of
President Goodluck
Jonathan to contest the
party ’s presidential
primaries, instead of
stepping aside for
Northern aspirants.
In whatever context in
which ex-VP Atiku
coughed those obvious
threats, they are ill-
advised because the issue
of zoning and rotation
within the PDP has long
been addressed and
decided upon, by the
National Executive
Committee (NEC), the
highest decision making
organ of the party, and
peopled by
representatives of all state
and zonal executives,
governors, and key
political officials.
That being so, and the
same appropriately
endorsed by the party’s
Board of Trustees (BoT), it
is indeed reckless for any
aspirant, of the stature of
Atiku to impute dictatorial
tendency on the part of
President Jonathan, and
thus threaten to make
Nigeria ungovernable,
through the various
security breaches?
It is even more
condemnable for Atiku to
threaten violent change
because the electioneering
process is still on and thus
far, open and competitive,
as all aspirants, Jonathan
and Atiku inclusive
traverse the length and
breath of the nation for
support among elected
delegates without let or
hindrance.
That indeed is the nature
of intra-party politics, and
thus wrong for the former
Vice President to impute
bias even before the
primaries, billed for next
week to select a flag
bearer.
without prejudice to the
eventual outcome of the
PDP primaries, the former
Vice President ’s comments
smack of violent
vituperations of bad loser
or one searching for
reasons to explain a
failure in the future.
That is why Atiku’s threat
of making violent change
inevitable is today being
associated with various
bombings and security
breaches on the land.
Although, The Tide is
reluctant to share that,
rightly or wrongly,
Nigerians insisting on
investigating the former
Vice President, have a
point because of the
statesman ’s shocking
reactions to the deadly
new year eve blast at
Mogadishi Barracks, Abuja
a national calamity,
where, the presidential
aspirant condemned the
Federal Government
instead of the master-
minds of the bombings.
In fact, the content and
context of Atiku ’s
reaction, to many could
pass, as a prepared speech
in anticipation of the
bomb blasts.
This is why The Tide
shares the anxiety of most
Nigerians that no leader
should be over-looked in
the search for culprits,
Atiku inclusive, so that
Nigerians can approach
the next round of
elections in a secured
environment.