Former Petroleum Minister, Tam David-West, says President Goodluck Jonathan is not qualified to rule Nigeria, given the statement credited to his close ally and kinsman, Mujahideen Asari-Dokubo, that Ijaws are not Nigerians.
Asari-Dokubo, former Niger Delta militant, was quoted as saying that he is an Ijaw man and not a Nigerian.
“I have gone up to the Nigerian Supreme Court to state unequivocally that I, Mujahideen Abubakar Asari-Dokubo, I am not a Nigerian and do not wish to become a Nigerian,” he stated.
Jonathan, Asari-Dokubo and David-West are all Ijaw.
In fact, David-West and Asari-Dokubo are cousins from the Amachree dynasty of Kalabari kingdom of Rivers State, while Jonathan hails from Otuoke in Bayelsa state.
But Asari-Dokubo enjoys a more robust relationship with Jonathan, and on many occasions has threatened bloodbath if he is not re-elected in 2015.
Asari-Dokubo told journalists in September 2013: “The way things are going, there is no sitting on the fence in the battle before us. When some people say they have a right to rule and others don’t have, then there is no sitting on the fence.
“All of us will have to be in the ring and fight. We cannot leave Goodluck (Jonathan) alone.
“My support for Jonathan will be biased, because charity begins at home. Monkey no fine, but im mama like am. Goodluck, na my person (the monkey is ugly, but its mother likes it. Goodluck is my person). 2015 is already a settled matter. Goodluck Jonathan will be President in 2015.”
But David-West, a professor of virology, and an avid critic of Jonathan, said by Asari-Dokubo’s claim, Jonathan is not qualified to be Nigeria’s president, given his close association with the former militant.
“Asari-Dokubo said Ijaws are not Nigerians, and Jonathan is Ijaw. By implication, Asari-Dokubo is saying that Jonathan is not a Nigerian. And if he is not a Nigerian, he is not qualified to be President of Nigeria,” David-West argued.
He insisted that All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, is the best choice for Nigerians in the ballot next year.
“All we know is that we’ve done a good job and the public has responded very well. People should vote for their conscience and not money. They should vote for somebody that they know will not steal their money,” he said.
But he avoided speculating on Buhari’s running mate, saying even the man is yet to take his pick.
“We don’t know. Nobody knows. All what they are saying in the papers is speculation. Nobody knows. I’m sure he (Buhari) himself has not made up his mind on that.
“All they are saying about (Babatunde) Fashola, (Bola) Tinubu, (Rochas) Okorocha or (Adams) Oshiomhole being Buhari’s running mate is wild speculation.”
