2015 Presidency: North to punish pro-Jonathan politicians

Ango Abdullahi

INDICATIONS emerged, Thursday, that the north might sanction prominent politicians from the region found to be fraternising with President Goodluck Jonathan with a view to scuttling its desire of occupying the Presidency in 2015.

The decision to clip the wings of northern politicians who were yet to see the need for the country’s top political office to revert to the region, was taken at a meeting of the Northern Elders’ Forum, NEF, during one of its recent meetings in one of the states, which is under the state of emergency.

At the meeting, which had some governors and many elite from the north in attendance, strategies for voting out President Jonathan was elaborately discussed and agreed upon. It was learnt that one of the weapons to be applied in cajoling influential northerners particularly governors and lawmakers, in railroading into the northern agenda, is to brand the unwilling ones as ‘enemies’ of the region and expose them to public.

Fraternising with Jonathan

A member of the NEF, Prof Ango Abdullahi, confirmed the position of the north in an exclusive interview with Vanguard but declined to say how such action would work against top politicians, who were not voted into office by the forum. The former ABU vice chancellor, said that although the NEF had no power to remove such politicians from office, they had the prerogative to expose them as saboteurs of the north.

Abdullahi said: “It is true that we are looking at those from the north, who are fraternising with Jonathan to stop us from getting the Presidency in 2015. I can say to you that appropriate steps will be taken at the appropriate time to  deal with such moles known to be working with Jonathan against northern interest as far as the next election is concerned.

“We are aware that some of our people, governors, lawmakers and ministers are working against the interest of the region because they don’t believe that we should produce the next president of Nigeria. If we cannot do anything to stop them, we can mobilise the people to see them as the enemies of the north.”

Vanguard learnt that the NEF took the decision to sanction northern politicians working for Jonathan following the alleged persecution of Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State by the Presidency for reportedly having an ambition of pairing with his Jigawa counterpart, Sule Lamido, to run in 2015.

Although the duo have consistently denied the rumour, their posters, suspected to be planted by opponents, have continued to flood major cities and towns, thereby exposing them to more trouble with the Presidency. Despite the fact that the President has not declared his intention to run, his soldiers particularly former militants, have already threatened to cause mayhem if Jonathan was not returned in 2015.