The director, Special Duties (4) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Ayiri Emami, has laid claims to why certain persons in Aso Rock, the seat of power, are working against the party’s presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
According to the APC chieftain from Delta State, the cabal in the presidential villa wanted a pliable candidate who is not a strong-willed and experienced member of the party to succeed President Buhari.
Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, had at a live Channels TV morning programme, Sunrise Daily, corroborated Tinubu’s allegation of sabotage in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, saying a certain cabal in the presidency whose preferred candidate lost out in the APC presidential convention were sabotaging his bid to emerge the next president.
Speaking with journalists in Abuja at the weekend, Chief Ayiri alleged that members of the villa cabal are afraid of a successor with a strong social and political network with capacity to correct the error in governance.
He said, “Let me use myself as an example. Even in our small community. If you know your right and you know what you are doing and you want to lead, many people will come after you.
“A lot of people don’t want somebody that understands the system to lead because all they know is how to manipulate. Asiwaju knows the inner workings of governance. I am not saying that he knows it all.
“So, every day you will see all kinds of battles or blackmail, as well as attempts to stop him. That is how I see Asiwaju. He knows a lot about governance; he knows what to do to make sure that this country works. And if it works, persons who are there doing dubious things would not be able to do it again. So, if such a person is to take over, it won’t be an easy battle because they know he knows the inner workings of government and can’t be manipulated.”
Ayiri noted that with the revelations coming from the APC governors’ meeting with President Buhari last Friday it is now clear to Nigerians that the Naira redesign did not enjoy the buy-in of the APC administration at all levels.
“They are not policies of the APC at all because if they are the policies of the APC, everybody would be involved. These are policies of some few persons who are out to sabotage. Why introduce such policies during the election?” He queried.
On the perceived indifference of President Buhari to the APC presidential candidates’ campaign, Chief Emami denied that it was indicative of any lack of commitment or cold war between Tinubu and Buhari.
“To me, even during his own election, it was other people that were actually championing his (Buhari’s) campaign. So, I just feel that it is his normal style. All humans are not the same. Tinubu is a workaholic. During the 2014/2015 election season, he did that. At a time, even during the primary, somebody that was contesting like President Buhari said ‘I don’t have money to give to the delegates’.
“For example, if he was not the one contesting, people would have said this man is a wicked man. Then, he was the one contesting and he could make that kind of statement in the public while canvassing for votes at the campaign ground. To me, it is his lifestyle. Even if he is supporting you, he is not that type that comes out to the public and say it.
“But what we’re trying to say is that those saboteurs within should please retreat. Let’s go into a proper contest. I don’t see any problem. To me, I know that Buhari is supporting us because he had said it publicly and that is one Muslim man that I believe that once he swears by the Quran, he stands by it.”
