…Says, ‘I will get the PDP ticket’ , … Insists Party can’t trim number of presidential aspirants
Former Governor of Sokoto State and presidential aspirant, Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa, is one of the leading personalities seeking to fly the flag of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in next year’s election if chosen as the candidate.
Of all the PDP presidential aspirants, Bafarawa whose first name, Attahiru is synonymous with Cleanness, believes he is better equipped to beat incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in 2019 if his party makes him its standard bearer.
Like the other PDP aspirants too, Bafarawa who dubs himself as a core democrat has been travelling from one state of Nigeria to the other to interface with his party delegates and supporters, and to see the level of development or otherwise for himself rather than rely on hearsay and the propaganda emanating from government quarters.
On Wednesday, Bafarawa approached the Secretariat of the Lagos State Chapter of the PDP with his “Unity 2019” mantra to solicit the buy-in of delegates as he rounded off his tour of South West.
The trio of IKECHUKWU AMAECHI, OGUWIKE NWACHUKU and ISHAYA IBRAHIM of TheNiche sat down with Bafarawa afterwards at the Presidential Lounge of the Muritala Mohammed Airport, Ikeja where an engaging discussion on his quest to govern Nigeria come 2019 ensued.
….Excerpts
How has it been moving round the states and consulting with delegates?
My touring of the states is not just to sell myself. The essence of my tour is to see things for myself. That is why I decided to go by road because I wouldn’t want any Minister, Senator or House of Reps member to tell me about his constituency.
Already, I have the experience of the North. But because I want to be a Nigerian president, I decided to go round to see things myself so that when I get the opportunity of getting the ticket, I would know what to do.
You told this newspaper last year (September to be precise) when Atiku Abubakar was making moves to return to the PDP, that there was no reserve ticket for him in the Party. People are saying that some of you are actually in the race to stop Atiku.
But some are also saying that Atiku is there to stop us. So, which one are you going to take? Atiku was a former vice president, and most of the other aspirants are former governors. So, we are experienced enough to go through the process.
None of us has special privilege to be the owner of the ticket. So, stopping anybody doesn’t make sense. All we have to do is to go and see the delegates in the 36 states and sell ourselves. It is not a question of stopping anybody. That is the reason why we are coming in our numbers because everybody feels that they are qualified. We have no reason to stop anybody. Atiku believes he can do it, and I believe I can do it, while the others believe that they can do it. So, the delegates will decide.
The PDP leadership is trying to trim the number of the aspirants?
I’m not aware of that. The PDP leadership is trying to unite us to become brothers to one another. There is no way the PDP leadership will try to reduce the aspirants, because if that be the case why did they sell the forms? It is just the imagination of you people and it is not going to happen. As far as the leadership of the PDP is concerned, the door is open for everybody to participate. It is not a question of stream-lining the number of aspirants. If they wanted to do that, they should have minimized the number of forms to sell.
So, what is giving you the confidence that you will clinch the PDP presidential ticket?
Whatever somebody is doing, he should have confidence in doing it. I didn’t go in just for the sake of becoming an aspirant. I’m there because I want the ticket and by the grace of God, I will get the ticket.
There are insinuations out there that some of the PDP presidential aspirants are actually being sponsored by the APC to destabilize the party.
Well, I have been hearing of that. But those who are claiming this should come out and name those who are moles planted in the PDP by the APC government. Hearsay, I don’t want to comment on that. Those insinuating should come out and name them because if you cannot confirm what you say, you don’t need to say it.
Don’t you think that twelve aspirants is unhealthy for the PDP, particularly at a time when the opposition has only one aspirant who is the incumbent.
You should salute the aspirants of the PDP who come out to contest because they are committed to save this country. Forget about the numbers. And don’t compare APC and PDP. APC is a limited liability company owned by one person. PDP is a Plc. That is the reason we have a lot of shareholders coming into it. But APC is a limited liability company that is the reason they have only one candidate. Are you telling me that nobody is qualified in the APC to aspire for the ticket? With that type of attitude, there will never be democracy.
Even in older democracies like in America, you would see a lot of aspirants coming out to vie for the Republican or Democratic ticket. Then gradually, they would be stepping down. But nobody will tell them to step down. We have the charisma, we have the energy to continue going until the 6th of October at the convention.
It is good for the party to have many aspirants. You know, in a building where you have two pillars, if one pillar falls, the building will collapse. But if you have eight, nine, ten pillars holding the building, if one, two, three pillars fall, the building will not fall because they have others to sustain the building. Now, just of recent, one of us, Ibrahim Shekarau quit and left the party. The party didn’t shake. So, you see what I mean?
You are a very prominent politician from the North West. If you get the PDP ticket to run against the incumbent president who is equally popular in the North West, tell us why you think the people should vote for you and not Buhari.
Let me give you the name. My name is Attahiru. Attahiru means the Cleanness. Buhari is not Attahiru. But me, I’m Attahiru. I think I’m qualified by the nature of my profession – a politician, businessman, traditional title holder and a big time farmer. So, I have a lot of connection with people to make them understand and trust me that I’m better than Buhari.
But it is said that the president has a lot of integrity and that’s what is going for him. Can you match him on that?
Myself, I have integrity. Buhari himself said I have integrity. I can remember when I was arrested by the EFCC, he said “Bafarawa is not corrupt and Bafarawa can never be corrupt.” And this much has been confirmed by the court to free me, discharge me and acquit me from the allegation leveled against me. So, I even congratulate him for what he said about me because he has been vindicated by the court.
You were in the PDP in 2015 when the party lost the presidential election. What in your estimation has changed with the PDP?
At that time, everybody believed Buhari was a Messiah. When he went round, he said he was going to make N1 equal to $1. He said he was going to give N5,000 to everybody in Nigeria who has not got employment, among other things he said and people trusted him because they said he was a man of integrity. Now, he has not delivered all what he promised. So, I don’t see any reason for his return.
Number one, he is ageing. Even when we are talking of retirement age, pastors retire at the age of 70, professors at 70. He is over 70. For him to continue retaining the position, it is a real danger. People are retiring at 70. He is getting to 80 and he is sick. Because he is sick, this is why the country is sick. So, I don’t think Nigerians will trust him with another mandate.
But the narrative out there is that the PDP can’t be trusted because of its perceived corruption. You are saying it is not so?
Buhari is just campaigning to deceive people like you. When you are talking of corruption, it hurts me, my heart bleeds when you people are accusing the PDP. Those PDP members who are accused of corruption have left PDP and joined the APC. Those who are accused of corruption are all in APC. Those who are in PDP, I believe are the clean people. Those who are dirty, have moved to APC.
By just the name PDP, everybody is throwing dust. How many people have been accused by the EFCC and when they joined the APC, the chapter is closed. I don’t need to tell you names, you know them.
And again, whoever is a qualified, licensed criminal when he enters APC, he is clear. Now, the APC is corrupt. For even Mr. President to agree to accept donation of N45 million form, you know it is a bribe. He has been in office for over three years, he should have reserved his salary to pay for the form.
What does he do with his salaries? Free feeding, free medical treatment, free clothing, free everything. All the money he has been collecting, what is he doing with that? He should have used the money to pay for the forms. Even if he doesn’t have the money to pay for the forms, why can’t he sell the cows that he has to pay for the forms?
And here you are talking of corruption. There is no single messenger that Buhari puts in the EFCC. It was the PDP government that embraced EFCC. Who brought Magu, who brought everybody in the EFCC, it was the PDP government. Go and check, there is no single person that Buhari brought to the EFCC to fight corruption. He is just using the fight against corruption as his Capital Project. He wants people to believe that he is fighting corruption. But he should have energized the structure of the EFCC since he is not the founder.
You have said you were a victim of the EFCC. There was a time you said they raided your home like armed robbers. If you get the PDP ticket, and eventually becomes Nigeria’s president, what will you do with the EFCC?
The objective of fighting corruption, nobody would ignore it. We have to fight corruption to the point where it can be eradicated. But EFCC cannot eradicate corruption but, we the leaders. We are not sincere as a people, otherwise things will not become this worse.
The electorate are corrupt. Everybody is corrupt. Even the president knows that he cannot win election without bribing the electorate. Somebody should be sincere. But the way and manner people are talking for the sake of talking to deceive people, it is unfortunate.
Corruption can be eradicated by the style of the leadership. Corruption is from bottom to top. Now, delegates will be asking how much did the aspirant bring? And that is the beginning of the corruption. Are you telling me that APC is going to do their convention free of charge? They have to transport delegates too. Where will they get the money to transport the delegates? Or will they be coming on their own? This is the beginning of the corruption.
I listened to you when you were addressing the PDP delegates. What struck me was your advice to them. What made you offer such pieces of advice? Or are you worried that the PDP primaries may be a highest bidder kind of thing?
It’s just a sound warning for people to know their right. When you know your right, you don’t need to go and sell your integrity because how much are you going to collect for you to sell your integrity? Let every aspirant come out with plans.
Like, when I went (to meet with the Lagos delegates), I didn’t go empty. I went with two hands. What I have done and what I am going to do. So, I expect every aspirant, if you were a governor, what did you do? Bring it to the delegates to see so that you can convince them that this is what I have in my state which I can develop to the national level. That is the essence. Come with your data. What did you achieve when you were there?
What in your opinion is the biggest problem facing Nigeria?
Illiteracy. When people are illiterate, there is no difference between them and animals. The only difference is that they are talking, animals don’t talk. That is why the most important thing is to give priority to education. When you educate people, you educate the world. Without education, there will be no progress, no development. So, the best thing for any government is to educate the people, give them security. When there is education and security, people can use their knowledge to take care of themselves.
The lack of education is the reason we have all these area boys because they didn’t go to school. Their parents could not afford to pay their school fees. By the time we allow these to continue, nobody can govern this country.
The slogan for your campaign is ‘Unity 2019’. Are you limiting that to your party or Nigeria?
When I say ‘Unity 2019’, it is not unity for the party. I want to be president in 2019 and there is no way I can do that without unity. First of all, as a leader you have to unite the people. By uniting the people, you have to make everybody equal, to become true Nigerian whether you are Hausa, Igbo or Yoruba.
Everybody has to have their own right as citizens of this country. But the way and manner this government, this Buhari administration is behaving, they are dividing the country. That is the reason I said it is a damage control we are coming to do. Now, look at his appointments. Almost 80 percent of his security appointment is in the north. Is it right? It is not. I’m a Muslim and a northerner, but any sensible person cannot just sit down and do that thing. That is the beginning of the crisis for the country. That is why people are asking for restructuring of the country because they feel that they are marginalised. That is the reason I came out with “Unity 2019”.
So, what’s your own view about restructuring?
In order to make it sure, that is why I put it in writing not just by word of mouth. Restructuring and federalism, I will give you the book. I’m not just saying I agree, if I agree what am I going to do? I will give you a copy of the book to show you how I am going to do it.
We had various conferences, recommendations, they were all put aside. By the time I come in, I will set up a committee, bring all the recommendations of the various conferences by various governments, set up a committee to come out with an agreeable, adoptable, sustainable plan, then we implement it within a short period. We don’t need to call another conference again, spending public money again, wasting people’s time. Already, that has been done.
Politics cost a lot of money, and at the level you are aspiring, it is not going to be in millions. You are a wealthy man, alright. But do you have the financial muscle to run for the president of Nigeria?
Shagari, Tafawa Balewa, Zik, Awolowo, they were leaders of government of this country, they were not rich.
Shagari was not a rich man when he became president. Obasanjo was not a rich man when he became president. Yar’Adua was not a rich man when he became president. Jonathan was not a rich man when he became president. Buhari was not a rich man when he became president. Why me? You can see that the nature of being the president of this country is not the question of money. There is nobody who used only his own money to become the president of this country.
Your governor, Aminu Tambuwal is your political boy and he is also in the race like you. If at the end of the primaries, he gets the ticket, are you going to throw your weight behind him?
Of course, once you open your question by saying he is my political boy, at least I am glad that my political boy has reached that position. At the same time, if I get there, he would say his political father. So, it is either way. It doesn’t have anything to do with relationship. We respect each other. The only difference people are looking at is that we come from the same state. But it is not only Sokoto State that will give the ticket. Out of 36 states, if you take Sokoto away, the two of us can go and look for the support, then, we share the votes of Sokoto 50/50. There is no cause for alarm.
Are you confident you will win the heart of the delegates from Sokoto?
By the grace of God, not only Sokoto. If I’m only confident of Sokoto delegates, then I better stop it. I’m not hoping on Sokoto delegates to become the presidential candidate of the PDP. I am looking for Nigerian support.
How do you feel about some PDP stalwarts who are jumping out of the PDP to the APC, people like, Godswill Akpabio, Emmanuel Uduaghan, and Shekarau you talked about earlier? Do they belong to the category of politicians you think are corrupt that have joined APC?
I cannot accuse anybody to be corrupt because I do not have any evidence to accuse somebody of corruption. If you accuse anybody to be corrupt, take him to court and let the court prove that he is corrupt, then you can say somebody is corrupt.
All I can say is, those who are joining APC are not democrats per se. Most of Nigerian politicians, that one I can say it loud, are in politics because they take politics to be a small scale industry. Because it is a small scale industry, there is no ideology, there is no vision, so anywhere they find it lucrative, they go. As a democrat getting to 20 years, I have always been in the opposition. I have never joined a party for the sake of the fact that it is in power.
How would you objectively assess the three and half years of Buhari and by extension, the APC?
They have done well.
How do you mean?
Ah! For you to ask me that question, you know the answer more than I do.
I don’t know.
I’m also asking you to assess so that we can put our views together and see whether the three and half years of Buhari’s tenure has been something to cheer (laughter).
Am I the only Nigerian who is feeling it? At least you are feeling it more than myself. So, let me hear your own so that I can endorse your own (more laughter).
If you are elected president of Nigeria come 2019, what should Nigerians expect from you in the first year of your presidency?
Damage control. What Nigerians expect to see from me is to unite them, to give everybody equal right, then, we can build the nation, because now, at the rate we are going, our country is sick because the driver is sick. Generally, when you are doing damage control, you don’t look back. What has happened has happened.
You know President Muhammadu Buhari very well?
Very well, yes.
Are you disappointed by what he is doing?
I’m disappointed with his government because what he is doing is different from what his government is doing. Government is for the people. When you have bad advisers, you blame the government. Even though he is the driver, I am blaming the government.
Do you believe he is a man of integrity?
This integrity you people are talking about, I don’t even know how I am going to talk about the word. It takes a lot to assess the integrity of somebody.
Can he be trusted?
Whether he can be trusted or he can’t be trusted, the people know better than myself now. By the time he came, few of us know him. Now, everybody can make their judgment. Whether he can be trusted or he can’t be trusted, it is now open.
Do you think that the PDP is reformed enough to defeat the APC in 2019?
The PDP of today is a new brand where all those who are not clean are getting out of the PDP and going to the APC. So, I believe that with the reform of the PDP, by the grace of God, we will get rid of the APC.
Some people may say that PDP is not so strong in Sokoto state.
You cannot be in Lagos and assess what is happening in Sokoto state. Go to Sokoto and see for yourself. When you go there, then you visit me in Sokoto and give me your own observation. You don’t sit down at a place, judge Sokoto politics by the social media.
I have visited many states in the course of my meeting with the PDP delegates and I have been travelling by road to see things for myself. There are places I spent 11 hours on the road because the road is so bad, like when I went to Akwa Ibom and tried to connect Calabar in Cross River State. So, I will not need anybody to tell me what I saw. That is what I expect people who stay at a place to imagine what is going on somewhere to be doing so as to have a better knowledge of the environment and be able to make informed judgement.
Thank you for your time Your Excellency and good luck in your aspiration.
Thank you also for having me.