Hon. Jude Tabai, popularly known as ‘King of the Niger Delta Youths’ was the Director of Mobilisation to President Goodluck Jonathan during the 2011 electioneering. In this interview with SAMUEL OGIDAN, Tabai speaks on the APC’s threat to PDP ahead of 2015, Boko Haram and the president’s re-election bid among others
View on perceived President Goodluck Jonathan’s weakness
I know President Goodluck Jonathan is someone that has the love of many Nigerians at heart, and will never do anything that will hurt the welfare and sensibilities of the citizens. He would rather suffer and take the blame as a leader than see any Nigerian suffering. Those describing the President as weak do not know the man. He is a democrat at heart and a firm believer in justice and equity. He would try and do all that is required to do to resolve an issue amicably. He is not given to too much emotion and he has the patience to accommodate all views. That is what the man is made up. When he was the governor, a lot of persons came up with various options on the way forward, but he maintained his calm and was able to tackle the problem of militancy.
He proved to be a man of his people. The then President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua relied on him to get the Niger Delta militants to surrender their arms and embrace the amnesty programme. Jonathan is not a slow man but he weighs whatever options that are available to him before he takes a decision. That perhaps explains why some people refer to him as weak, but I see that as a manifestation of statesmanship and strength of character.
Inability to move against Boko Haram insurgents
The issue of Boko Haram, if you can recall before the 2011 polls, some people promised to make the country ungovernable if Jonathan wins the presidency. We have seen that happened and nothing has happened. We need to ensure that those who vowed to make the country ungovernable are brought to book. Going by the level of violence and bloodshed that has trailed the affairs of the North-east, it is very clear that there
are sponsors. Behind any militant action, there are sponsors. Unless Goodluck Jonathan goes after these sponsors and bring them to book, the solution to insurgency in the North-east will become a mirage. Can you just imagine what these terrorists have done to our people? Killing innocent school children and making the affected states a war zone and thereby threatening the continued existence of our nation.
I am happy that President Jonathan has declared that he would go all out against the insurgents. I call on all Nigerians to support the government and provide our military with necessary information to resolve the problem in good time. We must take note that security is a collective effort. Let us not abandon that challenge and responsibility to few members of the society. I am sure with the measures being deployed by the government; the issue will be resolved sooner than later.
Sack of governors of affected states
Those calling for the imposition of full emergency, including the removal of political leadership have their points. If you can recall, there have been so many attempts by government to restore peace, but the recurring violence has made it impossible on the part of government to bring peace. I really will want to see a situation where the recurring violence in the North-east and other parts of the country is brought to an end and Nigerians in those states spared of further bloodshed. The inability of the state governors to assist the federal government tackle the insurgency is a clear pointer that all is not well in those states. The imposition of full state of emergency can go further in making the federal government take full responsibility and restore peace within a short span of time.
APC takeover threat in 2015
If the PDP is joking with the threat posed by the APC, then members of the ruling party better wake up from their slumber. We have seen the APC engaging in beating war drums and threatening that peace will be illusive if Jonathan contests and wins the 2015 polls. To me, what the APC has done is an open declaration of war and only unserious minds will not be concerned with such threats. There is need for the ruling party to come out in a strategic manner to counter the falsehood being served Nigerians from the APC stable. If you look at the media space, the opposition has taken control of everything in terms defining the prevailing discourse. We need to ensure that what the federal government is doing under President Jonathan is adequately being reported to the Nigerian people.
There are lot of things this government has done in terms of infrastructural development and providing enabling environment for the privatisation of the power sector. For your information, this government has ensured the attraction of $11 billion to the agricultural sector alone, just as it has saved the sum of N6 billion for the nation from the role of middle men in the distribution of fertiliser. The power sector is now privatised and Nigerians can hope for uninterrupted power supply in the nearest future. Every sector of the economy is undergoing transformation.
The railway that has been neglected for decades is now being brought to life. Very soon the Abuja-Kaduna fast tracks are soon to be completed. Our airports that were once eyesore have been transformed and the safety of our airspace is in line with best international practices. This we have achieved under the Jonathan administration and the spokesmen of this administration are not screaming to the tops for the citizens to appreciate the giant strides recorded by the government.
Will Jonathan contest in 2015?
Who says he won’t contest? He has given a good account of himself and there is nothing stopping him. Look at what he has done. See the improvement in our infrastructure and see how he is transforming the nation. Being a war time president, as you can see from the incessant insurgencies in the North-east, Jonathan has not failed in improving on the lives of Nigerians. I can confidently tell you that we that campaigned for him in 2011, after we saw what he did in Bayelsa, are ever ready to continue doing so for the 2015 polls.
Way out of oil bunkering?
A lot has to be done by government. The problem is that every military man you send to guard oil pipelines in the Niger Delta is interested in making it financially. There is no way you can solve the problem without engaging the military in a frank talk. Once the military men are engaged in guarding our oil installations and made to be sincere and put the national interest above pecuniary interest, then, you can be assured that everything will be resolved and you won’t have any problem of oil bunkering again.
Confab and Jonathan’s alleged hidden agenda
To be fair, everyone has a right to his own view. Those who allege there is a hidden agenda have a right to their opinion, and the onus of proof rests on them to prove. Be it as it may, let me tell you that President Jonathan has a right to convene a conference that will assist him in the governance of the country. There is nothing illegal about it. Jonathan has said he has no hidden agenda and there is nothing on ground to make people to disbelieve him. What I can say for now is that let the conferees continue with the discourse,at the end of the day, we shall know what hidden agenda is there, if indeed there is one. For now, I wish to let you know that President Jonathan that I know is a transparent person and will not do anything that will hurt the continued existence of Nigeria as a political entity. He will do everything within his power to ensure everything works. That is all I can tell you.
How far has the youth fared under Jonathan?
To be frank with you, there is more this present administration should be doing for this country. I want to tell you without any iota of doubt that the youth of this country need to be taken care of by this administration. There is need for some of us who worked and still working for President Jonathan to be convinced that our efforts in working for him that led to his emergence as President was not in vain. That can only be taken if the interests of our youths are taking into consideration.
As the most vulnerable group in this nation, the government ought to do something faster to take the interest of the youth into consideration. Government should strive to empower the youths through employment opportunities and creating enabling environment for actualisation of potentials. Some of us who worked for people are always willing to tell powers that be some truths. I am not one that can compromise and refused to tell powers that be in order to curry favour. I will always tell them the truth and also let them know the true picture of their performance before seeking re-election.
Advice to Jonathan ahead of 2015
I will tell him to break free from the selected few who seek to hide him from his achievement and refrain from telling the citizens the truth of his achievements. He has done a lot for the people but the electorate at the grassroots, are yet to appreciate what he has done. If you look at the newspapers every day, Jonathan is the most criticised Nigerian president. Of course, not many people gave him a chance of being where he is today. But he has continued unabated because Jonathan is an idea whose time has come. So, nobody can stop the idea. If given an opportunity to see him, I will advise he overhauls his information machinery so that his strides in governance can be showcased to people at the grassroots. Once that is done, the electorate will know what the truth is all about and Nigerians will appreciate the need to allow the President continue with his good works of ensuring dividends of democracy to the people beyond 2015.
