By Salim Yunusa
National Chairman of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Alhaji Yabagi Yusuf Sani has suggested that the Nigerian government could use mercenaries in its fight against insecurity since the problems appeared to overwhelm the nations military and security outfits.
“On the solution to insecurity, Yabagi Yusuf Sani said “insecurity needs an intelligent approach that you must first all accept that you have failed. And when you know that you have failed, what do you do; look for help.
“Even in business, there is what is called outsourcing. When you know that your machinery cannot produce everything, you approach another company to use its machinery to produce for you.
“And at the end of the, we take the credit. So the security situation in this country requires us to outsource; it could be mercenaries, it could be allying with other governments to stop this problem,” he said.
While reacting to the age limit for the presidential candidates as suggested by former President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, he said that IBB’s assertion might be the guiding principle towards 2023.
Yabagi Sani, who was the Presidential candidate of the ADP in 2023, spoke in an interview with journalists in Kaduna weekend.
He said “former President Ibrahim Babangida is an elder statesman, and you can say that he is an Icon, he is one person his views are respected. Whenever he talks, he says something that is very fundamental.
“He must have gone into deep thought, looking at the past, the present and the future for him to come to the conclusion that anybody who will occupy the country’s number one seat in 2023 should be about 60 years old.
” I cannot question his judgement by virtue of his position and age in terms of Information. But that may be the guiding principle towards the 2023 election. But having said that, democracy is about the people not about individuals; democracy itself is the government of the people, for the people, and by the people.
“It is like you have a political party, you have a Board of Trustees, and you have the executive, and you have the electorate, so from time to time you listen to the Board of Trustees, their wisdom, but it is just an advice for you to arriving at a judgment that you may be comfortable about a particular matter. I think his advice is like any other statesman giving advice. What will play out, you don’t know,” he said.
Commenting on the multiplicity of Presidential candidates during the 2019 elections, and the possibility of the opposition defeating the ruling party if they had merged in 2019, the crude oil expert explained that: “in an ideal situation, it could work. But in a situation where it is not an election, everybody knows it. It is not an election that we are holding; everybody knows that Nigeria is conducting a kind of jamboree, an organized crime so that the people’s mandate can be snatched and given to whoever they want to give.
“It doesn’t matter if all the political parties become one party as long as electing our leaders remains the way it is today, you can forget it because it is not about who count votes for who, it is about those at the helm of affairs and those conducting the election who decide who to give power. They don’t care about what people will say because they are already in court before even the election.”
Asked about the solutions to these problems, he said “well, the solution is for the followers to wake up to take power. Power is not given on a platter of gold. The power that belongs to Nigerians has been hijacked by the state capitals.
“This country is under what we call the State capitals. No matter what you do it will not serve the interest of the masses under the condition we find ourselves today where we are about to get the solution by way of the Electoral Bill.
“The transmission of election results is to be done electronically. But the State capital agents are looting, steal brazenly. The way stealing is going on by State Chairmen, State governors, Councillors, National Assembly, the presidency.
“Stealing is rampant under this government. We know it, except if we pretend we don’t know it. No wonder the situation we are in today in this country is banditry, wanton killing, kidnapping, Boko Haram insurgency, restiveness.
“This is because there is no governance. We must tell ourselves the gospel truth. There is government but no governance in Nigeria today which was put in place by agents of oppression against the masses.
“Tell me, what has the masses gotten from this democracy. What is it? The masses have become poorer; they are faced with abject poverty, insecurity. They are being kidnapped, killed, and we have a military that is spending a large part of our money, last year they gave them one billion dollars to fight insecurity. What happened to that one billion dollar which President Buhari took?
“As long as people are not asking questions about what they did with the money, and as long as people are not asking questions to hold government accountable, we will remain in this rigmarole. We are not saying someone should kill somebody, but hold them accountable.
“The constitution guarantees that people should demonstrate if they must demonstrate. You have to demonstrate peacefully because that is the beauty of democracy. In developed societies the people hold the government accountable; the people ask questions, so the government cannot deprive the people of their rights. There are sorrows and fears in our land,” he said.
On how he would remedy Nigeria’s socio-economic problems if he happens to succeed Buhari in 2023, he said “it is very easy. I always say that Nigeria is the easiest country to govern. It is the easiest, mark my words and I will tell you why. This is the country where what you require government success is given to you beyond what you need to run the government.
“Talking about resources; we are fabulously endowed. Look at agricultural potentials, a country that guarantees food security, a country that is number six among countries that export crude oil and gas, you can stand on your two legs and challenge anybody because you have the resources, the capital. We have a large population in this country to fight poverty. Our economy is the biggest economy in Africa. Africa continent has 30% of the natural resources in the world.
“The next economy to Nigeria is South Africa, and talk of Egypt, Ethiopia, they are nowhere near Nigeria. All we need is a leader with skills. We have Nigerians with skills who are making it outside the shores of this country. If you at countries that we call developed countries, they are enjoying the services of Nigerians in their hospitals, government, whatever. If you go to Canada you find Nigerians occupying the third position in their government. You go to the UK it is the same thing and we call them developed countries. The brain drain in Nigeria is alarming.
“By the time ADP assume power, you will never believe this is the same Nigeria. There will be employment for the masses. How do you expect a situation where 200 barrels of crude oil is exported per day amounting to 140 billion dollars per day, and we are still in poverty, killing each other.
“Somebody should ask questions. Where is our money? But we are not asking questions, and that is why we are in these problems. If you employed a manager in your company and he keeps on recording losses every day and you keep that manager there, without asking him what he did with the money, he will continue to loot the company because he believes that nobody knows what he is doing.
“So the problem of Nigerians is with Nigerians. I am not calling for an uprising to burn down any house. But burn down the minds of these thieves so that their conscience will begin to prick them do that, they will begin to have respect for you. They don’t have respect for us because we don’t ask questions, they think we are fools. When we get there it is given and take. You give us your allegiance and resources; we will definitely make your life better.”
The Constitution of this country says you must provide welfare, security and shelter before you can call yourself a governor,” he stated.
He was of the view that neither APC nor PDP could save Nigeria, adding that
“President Muhammadu Buhari is an individual that I respect a lot before what is happening today. MaiGaskiya (the trustworthy)is not ruling, and that is not loved. If you are elected to run the government you have to run the government very well. Because even God that created us created heaven and hell, God is our Creator. But if you do certain things that He says you should not do, He will take you to hell. And if you do the things He says you should do, He takes you to heaven.
“Have you seen that in President Buhari? He does not apply the carrot and sticks principle of governance which would have complimented his MaiGaskiya posture. He has lost bearing for relevance. Nigerians cannot be dying if he is operating like MaiGaskiya really. Because MaiGaskiya means rewarding who should be rewarded and punished who should be punished,” he alleged.
